Yay, last week the sun (in the northern hemisphere) stopped setting earlier and sank at the same time each day. From now on, sunset will be a minute or two later every day until midsummer.
In
the old Julian calendar (which existed until the middle of the 18th century)
the shortest day was 13th December and is St Lucy’s Day.
Her name means ‘Light’ and she is also the patron saint of sight, reminding us
we need light in order to be able to see – both physically and spiritually.
Her colour (in the church liturgy) is the same as that of the holly
berry – bright red, a colour we always associate with heart love. Something that’s noticeably lacking if we are
in the emotional state that calls for Holly.
"Repairing Hearts" by Charles H.
Geilfus. 1900,
from Vintage posters and Visual Curiosities
Poet John O’Donohue* writes:
“Love is the light in which we see light. Love is the light in which we see each thing in its true origin, nature and destiny.… The loving eye sees through and beyond images and affects the deepest change. To recognise how you see things can bring you self-knowledge and enable you to glimpse the treasures your life secretly holds.”
This
year, with all the divisiveness, aggression and hatred both in public and private life, we have seen
a great need for Holly, as these hostile emotions are the antithesis of love. Where we see the urge for revenge – ‘getting my own back’ – or the
urge to cause suffering (malice and spite) or witness the verbal or physical
reactions that are prompted by jealousy, envy, antagonism or suspicion, we see
a need for Holly, for the love which manifests as compassion, understanding and
goodwill. In Celtic
folklore the holly tree is sacred and symbolises peace and goodwill.
“Holly
connects us with the fundamental unity in the universe. There can be
no hatred of others when we and they are part of the same whole,” writes Stefan
Ball.**
*John O’Donohue in Anam Cara
** Bloom, available from the Bach Centre, along with my books.
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