Wednesday 23 November 2011

Tis the Season to be Jolly...

It seems that Christmas comes earlier each year, the shops putting their festive stock on the shelves in September and we all know it is not in the 'spirit' of things, it is all a marketing ploy.  However I know that the retail market is seriously struggling at the moment so they are doing whatever they can to bring the sales in, if you don't want to look at the Yuletide items in September you don't have to go down that aisle in the store.

But what about in my own house?  Well I have to admit we do get the festive bug quite early (and when I say we, I actually mean me LOL).  Although I don't start getting festive until November, it is usually quite early on.  Yes we have watched quite a few Christmas films already, yes I do have some Yuletide songs on my iPod play list (in amongst the Kate Bush and the Fleetwood Mac).

I like the build up, playing spot the Christmas decorations when out in the car, I like planning what to buy people.   I have actually done all my Christmas shopping, possibly because I am an organised person!  But also because although I have a huge love of the festive season I detest having to go around the shops in December when it is so busy!

But why do I celebrate, why do I get so excited when I am a pagan?

I love the 'holidays' because of the whole spirit of it, the meaning behind it all - whether it is the son of God or the Sun returning at the Solstice - what this festive time is about is caring for others, rejoicing in what you have, spending time with friends and family, celebrating the whole season!

We have two celebrations in our house one on the Winter Solstice for me and one on Christmas Day for hubby and the children.  We spend time together, we have presents and we eat lovely food.

A lot of the gifts I have purchased this year are from Folksy or Etsy, handmade items and I have also made some myself too.    We have made some of our Christmas cards and the children and I love to make decorations too - it is lovely to spend an afternoon with the glitter out!  

But in the run up to Christmas we also think about others, for instance the school runs a box scheme that we participate in, making up boxes with presents in for less fortunate children - we do this every year.  We also make gifts for the birds - making up fat & seed balls to leave out for them over the Winter.

I wrote last year about what Christmas means to me as a witch 'click here'

We will be putting up our decorations in the first week of December, but we also take them down on 27th December, for me the best part of the season is the build up, once Boxing Day is done and dusted I want to clear away the deccies and get the house back together!

Tis the season to be jolly and joyful...if you want it to be...it's up to you!

Tansy
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