Old Christmas Day Archives

I must be one of very few people who was actually delighted to return to work on Thursday… in fact, I could hardly wait! When I refer to ‘work’, I am actually talking about my writing and I have been desperate to begin work proper on my next full length book for months, but had to see ‘The Alternative Advent Calendar’ birthed out into the world first.

‘Spring In Your Step’ follows directly on from ‘Merry Midwinter’ so begins at this most grey and uninspiring time of year – January. Memories of my singular childhood are tumbling onto my keyboard along with lots of ideas and observations as to how we can all really enjoy these otherwise quiet, dull days and the true relevance of this first month of the year. As in my first book, there are also ‘Comments from Joan’ and one or two recipes per chapter taken from her manuscript cookery book… hearty sustaining casseroles, comforting hot, sticky puddings and delicious treats to sustain you through the winter weather, whether you are playing in the snow or struggling to work. And there will be more ideas for little seasonal craft projects along the way. If you would like to know more, I will be putting an extract on my blog in the next few days, so watch this space!

Some people are only returning to work on Monday, 6th January (which, ironically, is actually when ‘Old Christmas Day’ would have fallen before the change in the calendar in the 1750’s) but many have already returned in the days since we celebrated New Year. Why bemoan the fact? If you do not actually enjoy what you do for a living, at least be thankful that you have got a job to go to. (Although I have to admit that in these days of zero hours contracts and gross abuse of workers I can well understand why this might not be the case but this is a different conversation for another day.)

Distaff Day is variously placed on different days around the beginning of January and in times gone by was used to celebrate the return of the women to working life after the Christmas revels (as if they had been sitting twiddling their thumbs while all the feasting and celebrating had been going on – who was supposed to cook, bake and provide it all?) Some people refer to it as Saint Distaff’s Day but in fact there is no such saint – it simply refers to spinning (work traditionally performed by women using a distaff, hence the reference in family ancestry to the ‘distaff line when referring to the mother’s or female side of the family). On the other hand, in the agricultural communities the men returned to work on Plough Monday, the first Monday after Epiphany, when their work tools would be blessed, the farm horses dressed up and all manner of joking and hi-jinks entered into.

So celebrate your return to work… or the fact that you have had a good Christmas… or that Christmas is over and you can be left in peace… or that we might get snow in the next few weeks… or that we haven’t had snow to further complicate our lives… but celebrate something. Midwinter and Christmas isn’t the only opportunity to celebrate – if you look hard enough you can always finds lots of wonderful things to be thankful and happy about… celebrate LIFE!

Be like the mighty oak, well rooted and connected to the place you live in, strong and firm.

Here in North Wales it is fine, sunny and mild today- very spring-like in fact. Already the darkness of the Winter Solstice feels a long time ago… even though, in reality, it is only just over a fortnight. Before the calendar was changed back in the 1750’s, today would have been Christmas Day and is still known to some as ‘Old Christmas Day’. We have passed Twelfth Night. Most of us have now taken our decorations down and put them away for another year… well… eleven months at least!

Time to turn our faces firmly towards the new year and all the opportunities, challenges and excitement that it might bring with it. What will you do with your year? Like an enticing blank sheet of paper, we metaphorically stare into the endless distance and ponder what to write – fleeting impressions of ‘all that we have planned to do in the new year’ flash before us and we feel… suddenly totally overwhelmed. An overpowering impulse to turn around and run back to the other side of Christmas with all its promise of comfort and excitement assails us, but here we are, with our backs to the wall of New Year Passed and nowhere else to go except forwards into the huge unknown.

Like everything else, it is a case of taking tiny little steps, one at a time. Most of us have just come through the Christmas festivities and regardless of how much or little we enjoyed them, it is the one time of year which is definitely guaranteed to be deeply emotional. We actually need time to recover from it all. We have been whizzed about on an emotive and emotional merry-go-round for weeks before we even reached the 25th December. Now is the time to access your feelings, your position and reground yourself. Literally.

Go outside. Doesn’t matter what the weather is doing, even if it is tippling down with rain. It also doesn’t matter where you live. You can still reconnect with nature and the Earth, even if you live in the middle of a huge city. Yes, you can. Feel the ground beneath your feet. Perhaps you are standing on fresh grass or earth? Perhaps there is a hundred feet of concrete and piping between you and natural ground? It doesn’t matter. Know that your feet rest upon our natural planet – our man- made jungles are also a part of it. Feel your energy flowing down into the ground, seeking the true centre of our Earth, consciously connecting yourself to it, and in return, the energy of the Earth pulsing up into your feet, your legs, your body. Feel that strength and allow yourself to smile as you welcome it… allow that smile to grow into joy as you sense the power and strength of our natural home course through you, filling you with courage and healing.

Look up into the sky. Allow your mind to wander with your vision. Do not try to focus on anything in particular… in some circles it is called ‘soft gazing’. All this space, all this air, all this potential is yours. Breath deeply and pull the energies of the air into your chest. Feel your mind calm and clear as your mental processes fall back into rhythm and harmony.

Stretch your arms above your head… out to your sides… be aware of the space you inhabit, now, this moment. This is your space… your time… your place. And now, start from here.

Answer yourself three questions:
What is the most pressing thing that you need to do first?
What are you afraid of?
What can you do that will make your heart sing?

Go back inside. Perhaps think about it more deeply. Write your answers down.

Don’t keep panicking about what might happen or what you should/could be doing. See where these three answers take you. As you progress, repeat the practice and see what three answers you next come up with. If they are the same, they might need to be refined – split into several/many answers, or more questions and answers. Write them down like a family tree, beginning at the top of your page with the main issue and splitting, refining, defining the issue until you have a pattern of answers and consequent actions.

(A little tip here is that you can always ask other people what they might do in a similar situation. You do not have to copy them, but they might have suggestions to make that you have never thought of.)

NOW you have a plan.

A very happy new year to you all!