Dear Team, I wanted to bring to your attention the issue we are currently facing with the production of magic sizing. It seems that for some reason, the production of magic sizing has come to a halt and we are currently unable to fulfill the demand from our customers. This situation is of great concern as magic sizing is one of our most popular products and it has a significant impact on our sales and customer satisfaction. It is crucial that we address this issue promptly and find a solution to resume the production of magic sizing as soon as possible. To investigate the cause of this problem, I have assigned a team of experts to perform a thorough analysis of our production processes, equipment, and raw material supply. They will work closely with our suppliers to identify any potential issues and find ways to resolve them.

What Is Winter Solstice, And How Can We Celebrate?

Throughout history, societies across the world have held festivals and ceremonies marking winter solstice, the day of the “sun’s rebirth.” Most often, winter solstice celebrations honored the symbolism of fire and light, along with life, death, the rising sun, and the moon. Saturnalia, for example, was an ancient Roman pagan festival dedicated to honoring the sun god Saturn through offerings and gift-giving. Another tradition that we still hear about today is Yule (or Yuletide). Similarly, Indigenous people continue to mark the solstice with storytelling and ceremony. ☀

They will work closely with our suppliers to identify any potential issues and find ways to resolve them. In the meantime, I request all team members to remain proactive and keep the lines of communication open. If you come across any relevant information or suggestions on how to resolve this issue, please share it with the assigned team so that they can take the appropriate action.

But what is a solstice, exactly? Let’s explore the science.

The earth’s tilted axis (23.5º relative to the ecliptic plane) directly impacts the amount of sunlight we do or don’t get throughout the year. This tilt, along with our planet’s orbit, creates both astronomical and meteorological seasons. According to the National Centers for Environmental Information, “…astronomical seasons are based on the position of Earth in relation to the sun, whereas the meteorological seasons are based on the annual temperature cycle.”

When following the astronomical seasons, there are two solstices and two equinoxes to mark the change in meteorological seasons. The winter solstice happens between December 20 and 23, and it’s when the earth’s axis tilts away from the sun, making it the shortest day and longest night of the year for those living in the Northern Hemisphere. In the Southern Hemisphere, it’s reversed. (The word “solstice” derives from the Latin word sōlstitium and translates to “sun stands still.” ) This year, the winter solstice will happen on December 21.

There’s not an exact recorded time when humans first started observing the solstice, but monuments like Chichén Itzá, Stonehenge, and the Goseck circle indicate that people have been honoring the astronomical seasons for years.

Today, the winter solstice is a reminder to honor our connection to the natural world. It is a way we can celebrate the change in seasons without traditional holidays, gifts, or decorations. Instead, we can honor winter through rituals and self-care, looking specifically to our ancestors and heritage for inspiration rather than co-opting from others (a form of cultural appropriation).

“Today, the winter solstice is a reminder to honor our connection to the natural world.”

Here are a few ideas:

1. Consider practicing a pagan yule candle tradition (a tradition with European roots). Create an altar with items that bring you joy and peace, and surround it with candles. Light the candles as a symbol of the sun’s ability to give us both life and light.
2. Wake up early on the day of the winter solstice to watch the sunrise. Close your eyes, and feel the sun’s warmth on your face. Observe how the sun lights up the world around you. Bring a journal and write down any thoughts that come to mind.
3. Create a traditional winter feast with warming foods to eat on the night of December 21. Have fun creating a meal that warms and nourishes the body.
4. Draw a winter solstice bath, adding citrus essential oils to symbolize the energy of the sun.
5. Create something handmade that honors the sun or the natural world, such as a wreath from what you have around your house or backyard. Paint or draw the sun. Grab an instrument you haven’t played in a long time and write a song; then share it with loved ones.

“Wake up early on the day of the winter solstice to watch the sunrise […] Write down any thoughts that come to mind.”

However, you chose to bring rituals and new traditions into your life, make time to appreciate the natural world. Wherever you are, embrace how the air and the sky change, and on the coldest days, know the sun is right around the corner.

Courtney Jay Higgins is a writer at The Good Trade. She is also a yoga instructor, health enthusiast, and sustainable fashion advocate. You can find more of her writing and take one of her online yoga classes on her website Coincide.

Happy Solstice! Let’s Talk About How Christmas Is Pagan.

Merry Solstice, the day where we recognize that the war on Christmas was won before it even started because all the good stuff about Christmas comes from pagan traditions. Actually we’re here to talk about all the winter traditions that celebrate this, the shortest day.

First, let’s talk about the date and the actual Solstice and why there are festivals of light in all sorts of cultures and faiths thing time of year: it’s dark. The winter solstice is the longest night and shortest day of the year and so a lot of cultures have winter festivals of light: Channukah is certainly one, the Chinese celebrate the Dongzhi festival at the solstice, and so is Diwali in India. The pagan, neolithic Britons built Stonehenge to mark the solstice and look for the light to return and be reborn.

The solstice is primal and having a celebration at this, the literal darkest time of the year to celebrate light is not only logical, in its way, but a natural human response to the world. The date of Christmas as we know it was probably moved to coincide with the Roman festival of Saturnalia. Within that big winter party was a celebration of a sun god, including an assimilated Persian god of light, Mithras or just the sun in general. Romans adopted Christianity and probably moved the date, as with many things. But it makes sense to celebrate the birth of god/light in the darkest time because of the solstice.

This is why there’s Christmas at Hogwarts.

So the date and even the nature of Christmas is not exclusively Christian, but the trimmings and trappings of the holiday are definitely pagan. The tradition of the Christmas tree comes from, yes, solstice traditions, where pagans would bring evergreen branches into their homes as a symbol of life persevering through the Yuletide. The same symbolism applied to holly and mistletoe. The yule log was an actual tree that german pagans cut down and burned through the night (and longer) to keep light alive.

Traditions have a way of evolving and changing of course. The Christmas tree came into popularity in Germany in the 17th century, and made its way over to England in the Victorian era – in fact it was Victoria that popularized it. And now, we don’t burn yule logs but we still keep the light alive in this season…with Christmas lights.

Presents and bounty at Christmas? That’s a long complicated path too. The magi brought gifts, yes, but again it’s about celebrating life and bounty in the darkest, dead season. Also, the solstice has a long association with children. If we go back to that Roman festival of Mithralia, it was part of a larger monthlong solstice adjacent party called Saturnalia. One of the sub-festivals was Juvenalia – a festival of children. So Christmas has always been there…

Which brings us to…Santa.

Saint Nicholas was a fourth-century saint, based on a possibly real Turkish or Greek bishop and a patron of beggars, prostitutes, and children. Santa passed down the years and took on characteristics of various Pagan figures, like, and old man Odin who rides a flying horse and leaves gifts for children in their boots. This is much like the Swedish folk legend of the Tomten – a cute little gnome in red that leaves treats in shoes.

Shoes became stockings, Odin and St. Nick and Tomten merged. Things grow and change. Santa also bears some resemblance to the Holly King, one of two aspects of Celtic pagan god that rules half of the year and then succumbs to the oak king. It’s another story of death and rebirth, of light retuning that resonates through the years. Sadly, we can’t find a pagan origin for the little guy that poops in nativities in Spain, but he’s great.

It’s ironic that the Fox News crowd yells so much about the “War on Christmas” because most of what makes the season what it is has decidedly un-Christian origins. From caroling that came from wassailing to decking the halls, it’s all older than they think, and far more about the longest night than what happened away in a manger. But it’s still about life, and giving, and warmth.

To close out, I want to share one last blending of traditions, new and old. In the 70s a show began in Hartford Connecticut called “The Christmas Revels” which blended music and traditions of Christmas and the solstice to create a community experience that celebrates specific cultures and stories of the winter. The revels now happen in cities across the country and at each performance, no matter what, the read the poem “The Shortest Day” by Susan Cooper.

And so the Shortest Day came and the year died
And everywhere down the centuries of the snow-white world
Came people singing, dancing,
To drive the dark away.
They lighted candles in the winter trees;
They hung their homes with evergreen;
They burned beseeching fires all night long
To keep the year alive.
And when the new year’s sunshine blazed awake
They shouted, revelling.
Through all the frosty ages you can hear them
Echoing behind us – listen!
All the long echoes, sing the same delight,
This Shortest Day,
As promise wakens in the sleeping land:
They carol, feast, give thanks,
And dearly love their friends,
And hope for peace.
And now so do we, here, now,
This year and every year.

(image: Radu Andrei Razvan from Pexels)

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Holidays and Traditions around the December solstice

The December solstice is the Winter Solstice in the Northern Hemisphere and the Summer Solstice in the Southern Hemisphere. The day has astronomical, cultural, and religious significance.

Dusk in Lapland around the time of the winter solstice in December.

In the Northern Hemisphere, the December solstice is the winter solstice and the shortest day of the year.

Although winter is the season of dormancy, darkness and cold, the December solstice marks the "turning of the Sun" and the days slowly get longer. Celebrations of the lighter days to come and nature’s continuing cycle have been common throughout cultures and history with feasts, festivals and holidays around the December solstice.

I understand that this situation may cause some inconvenience and frustration among our customers. It is important to assure them that we are working diligently to resolve the issue and minimize any disruptions to their orders. We will also keep them updated on the progress of our efforts. I trust that as a team, we will navigate through this challenge and overcome it successfully. Let's focus our efforts on finding a solution and restoring the production of magic sizing at the earliest. Thank you for your cooperation and understanding. Best regards, [Your Name].

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