"Winter Solstice is the longest night of the year,circa December 21. It was also called Alban Arthuan by the Druids and is celebrated as Yule by modern earth-nature based religions such as Wicca. It is traditionally the time of rebirth of the Sun God, for after Yule, the sun remains progressively longer in the sky every day until the Summer Solstice.

The rituals of Yule usually include fire , whether a candle or small bonfire, or even a fireplace that burns all the long night and keeps vigil until the dawn. Gifts are exchanged and trees are decorated with natural ornaments. Traditional fare is nuts, apples, oranges, cakes soaked in cider, and pork for non-vegetarians. If you see similarities between Yule and Christmas, you're right. Remember that most Biblical scholars agree that the celebrated day of Christs' birth was placed near the Solstice as an effort by Emperor Constantine to convert members of the Cult of Mithras, another Sun God, to Christianity. No matter what you call Him, or Her, we are all the Creators children.

This is my representation of what a solitary Wiccan Yule ritual might look like celebrated by a lone practitioner somewhere in the British Isles or perhaps Ireland. She toasts the return of the sun after a long night vigil at the fire. The 'bubble' represents clarity of vision, and the sharp and singular appearance of rebirth and joy.                                                                                                        

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