Happy Solstice and Tree Ornaments of the Day #14, 15 and 16

The parallel traditions around the time of the winter solstice fascinate me. The reversal of the shortening days for our ancestors called for celebrations and other gatherings to honour the ideas of birth and rebirth. These often involved dancing, singing, feasting and bonfires. These gatherings helped dispell the fears and sadness that marked the short days and long, cold nights. By slaughtering livestock, our ancestors wouldn't have to feed them through the winter, so there was plenty of meat to be eaten. And as the sun began to appear for longer each day, it was natural that a light-celebration was part of the solstice festivities. Is it any wonder then that so many religions and traditions have light as the centre of the rituals of this time of year, and that we gather together so enthusiastically?

Tonight I toasted the solstice with single malt scotch and some gingerbread, depicted here in solstice-worthy, quasi-pagan images of anatomically correct gingerbread people. Oh, there's a snowflake and a boot too.