Winter Nights
As a heathen I celebrate Winternights as the start of winter, this is a festival that heathens will celebrate on different dates depending on the region they live, after all nature is not ruled by the calendars we humans make for ourselves and will change the seasons in each area as she sees fit. It is normally celebrated in the northern Europe area anytime between 15th of October and November. Winter Nights for me starts 1st of November as I wish to separate it from Halloween, though in truth I feel nature turned her thoughts to winter a week or so ago. Halloween to me is a secular festival, a time of fun and a chance to enter winter with a smile and fond memories of a joyful autumn. My new year will not start till the winter solstice, this now is the time to remember our ancestors, to regroup our thoughts and reflect on the years changes before the new one starts and to be thankful for this years harvest.
I have visited the graves of those dearest to me that I can get to and lay flowers for them, flowers are in my house in memory of those who I can not visit and I will be cooking a nice meal for the family in thanks for the harvest using the produce our garden has provide.
This is a digital scrapbooking layout I made of some photos I took yesterday as I made the rounds with my flowers, the trees looks so beautiful decked in their autumn colours around St. Wilfrids church.
and here is one of my favourite poems that make me remember that we all make mistakes, I have and no doubt my ancestor did too, but all we can strive too, is doing the best we can.
I have visited the graves of those dearest to me that I can get to and lay flowers for them, flowers are in my house in memory of those who I can not visit and I will be cooking a nice meal for the family in thanks for the harvest using the produce our garden has provide.
This is a digital scrapbooking layout I made of some photos I took yesterday as I made the rounds with my flowers, the trees looks so beautiful decked in their autumn colours around St. Wilfrids church.
and here is one of my favourite poems that make me remember that we all make mistakes, I have and no doubt my ancestor did too, but all we can strive too, is doing the best we can.
If you could see your ancestors
All standing in a row,
Would you be proud of them?
Or don’t you really know?
Some mighty strange discoveries are made
In climbing family trees,
And some of them, you know
Might not particularly please
If you could see your ancestors
All standing in a row
There might be some of them
You wouldn’t care to know.
But here is another question
That requires a different view.
If you could meet your ancestors,
What would they think of you?
–Mable Baker
All standing in a row,
Would you be proud of them?
Or don’t you really know?
Some mighty strange discoveries are made
In climbing family trees,
And some of them, you know
Might not particularly please
If you could see your ancestors
All standing in a row
There might be some of them
You wouldn’t care to know.
But here is another question
That requires a different view.
If you could meet your ancestors,
What would they think of you?
–Mable Baker
I wish all my blog readers
A very Happy
Winters Night
I love your Winters Night observation. I agree with what you said in your post and in your comment on my blog....we can't put Mother Nature in a little box on the calender. There have been years that we have had snow on Halloween and then other years it was too hot to even wear a jacket! Winter has tapped on the door here, but didn't stay. Winter is expected to come back later this week here, and this time it isn't just tapping on the door!
ReplyDeleteHave a blessed Winters Night observation!
You know, seeing this post and others from those who visit graveyards at this time of year, it makes me rethink my feelings about cremation. Funerals, wakes and burial grounds are for the living, not the dead.
ReplyDeleteI love the scrapbook - it's beautiful
I love your poem on ancestors, may I repost it on my blog?
ReplyDeleteIf you could see your ancestors
All standing in a row,
Would you be proud of them?
Or don’t you really know?
Some mighty strange discoveries are made
In climbing family trees,
And some of them, you know
Might not particularly please
If you could see your ancestors
All standing in a row
There might be some of them
You wouldn’t care to know.
But here is another question
That requires a different view.
If you could meet your ancestors,
What would they think of you?
–Mable Baker
Thanks everyone.
ReplyDeleteGriselda - of course you can use the poem, I can't remember where I found it from myself now, it was along time ago, but I do love the words and message it contains.
Aine - if you like graveyards keep checking back LOL cemetaries are one of my many hobbies and there will be more posted about them. I'm still trying to get sorted after the big blog change round I did.