Well, here we are in a fairly bleak midwinter, economically if not in terms of weather. The Winter Solstice is a turning point; the days start to get longer, but the worst of the weather is still to come. This year it's particularly notable as the date at the end of the Mesoamerican/Mayan long count calendar. It's impossible to miss the predictions ranging from Armageddon and the end of the world, to perhaps just the end of the world as we know it and the start of a new era. Destruction or transformation? Which ever, we're still here. And just at the moment, it's not raining either - it's a miracle!
The Winter Solstice always triggers an earworm for me and I potter about, singing it - if I can. I usually have a cold at this time of year and this year is no exception. I've loved it since it was in the Christmas pop charts in 1976: Jethro Tull's Ring Out, Solstice Bells.
Go on, play it loud and sing along, you know you want to! Thank you, Ian Anderson and Jethro Tull.
Good Yule to you all, and may the next year bring you your heart's desire, always providing it does no harm to anyone or anything else!
