Yesterday (Saturday) was a lovely sunny Saturday afternoon…and around 25 people came to Seaton Library to listen to me talk about the stars, the sun, the moon, and the Norman Lockyer Observatory. Great audience, with some wide-ranging questions, and some familiar faces! Thank you to all who came. Stargazing for All is available from Winstone’s Bookshop in Sidmouth as well as Amazon. Just go outside and look up – can you see bright Jupiter near the twins?
There are many articles bounding around at the moment about the bleakness of January with some suggestions of how to bring light (literally) into your life. What about the reverse though and embracing the dark…and enjoying the stars, the cosy nights in, the chance for the body to rest and recover from the busyness of Christmas and last summer. I bring out my green vases and have some dried Autumn grasses in a vase on the windowsill, while in the lighter, summery months, I bring out my white floral vases. Red and green lend themselves to the winter season by bringing warmth into the home. Initially struggling with not having work to bring structure to my week, I do not miss having to get up early on a dark, wet morning and coming home in the dark. To be honest, I also struggle with the couple of weeks in high summer that are invariably too hot while also trying to make the most of the extra daylight…
Living more seasonally is often promoted for more sustainable eating patterns but could equally apply to living patterns. With electric light, we have become used to staying up as long as we like rather than have natural cycles of near hibernation counterbalanced by busy periods of outside working.
On the subject of seasonality, I am working on a series of short stories taking young people through the events of the year and explaining the origins of various events. Many people enjoy the gift-giving, the feasting, the decorations, the parties of the winter season without embracing the origins, either Saturnalia or the birth of Christ. I feel we have been conditioned to ‘spend time with family’ whatever that means, feast, have fun, give gifts regardless of personal circumstances. It is that that puts people under pressure unless you have a fairly relaxed view of the 25 December. ‘Christmas’ can be celebrated around the actual date of 25th although the enjoyment of singing of ‘Come all ye faithful’ in its entirety can only fully be appreciated on Christmas Day.
Looking at the week ahead, the sun is gradually moving back towards getting up at 8 o’clock so the end of the dark mornings is in sight. Meanwhile, the evenings have been steadily getting lighter for a while now moving back towards 5ish. Have a good week! And make the most of those dark evenings…
A happy blue image for Monday
Karen Hedges 