Fan the Spark into a Flame

Summer is over, Winter is in full swing, and Yule is upon us. 

Yule, pronounced “yool”, falls on the 21st of December in the Northern Hemisphere, a date that is also known as the Winter Solstice. In the Southern Hemisphere (below the equator), Yule falls on the 21st of June.

The Winter Solstice is the day of the year when the night is longest and the day is shortest. After the solstice, the days begin to grow longer and the nights shorter.

Some Historical & Cultural Stuff:

Yule is the time of the year when the “dark half” of the year ends and the “light half begins”. 

Until the 16th century, the winter months were infamous for being times of famine in Europe - most cattle were slaughtered during this time so that they did not need to be fed during the winter. The feed was needed for the mouths of the farmers and the people. This meant that the solstice was a time when meat was plentiful, and is the reason why a lot of the celebrations surrounding this time of year centre around feasting and merriment.

In pre-Christian Scandinavia, there was a feast (named the Feast of Juul) that lasted for twelve (12) days. It celebrated the rebirth of the sun, and from this feast came the custom of burning a Yule log.

In ancient Rome, the Festival of Saturnalia (famously referenced in an episode of The Big Bang Theory) was the pillar of solstice celebrations. It was used to honour the God of agricultural bounty, Saturn and lasted around a week. Saturnalia was characterised by feasting, debauchery and the exchanging of gifts. Does that sound familiar? Well, it should! Many of these customs were absorbed and assimilated into Christian Christmas celebrations upon Emperor Constantine’s conversion to Christianity. This was done to make the conversion less of a shock.

Yule Associations: 

Colours:  Red, green, gold; white; silver; yellow.

Herbs & Plants: Mistletoe, Snowdrop, Lemongrass; Chive; Cinnamon; Sage; Rosemary; Ginger; Garlic; Orange Peel; Dill; Basil; Black Pepper; Bay Leaf; Ash; Thistle; Evergreen; Cedar; Frankincense; Holly; Ivy; Juniper; Mistletoe; Oak; Pine; Sandalwood; Yew; Cypress; Fir; Comfrey; Elder; Chestnut; Myrrh.

Symbols: Mistletoe, pillar candles in any associated colour, evergreen boughs and wreaths; fruit studded with cloves; wassail; Yule logs; holly.

Food & Drink: Yule log, wine (mulled), cider; turkey; lamb; venison; beef; cranberries; stew; pork; nuts; oranges; clementines. Seasonal vegetables. Wassail. Apples. Fruit. Cakes soaked in alcohol.

Stones Crystals & Metals: Gold, silver, diamonds; rubies; emeralds; bloodstone’ quartz.

Activities & Things to Do: Carolling. Wassailing, feasting, exchanging gifts; burning fires/candles; decorating a Yule tree and making decorations to put on it, such as Witch Balls, clove pricked fruit; make Winter potpourri.

Dear Jonghyun,

I know you don’t know me, and I don’t know you, but dude, I can say with 100% confidence that you didn’t do well.  

No…you didn’t just do well…

You were EXCEPTIONAL.

I can think back to the first time I saw a SHINee video…it was A.Mi.Go.  And while I liked and noticed each member, it was your voice - the passion in it - that stuck with me from that first listen (and, if I’m being real here, I also thought you were hella attractive).  From that point and every moment forward, my reactions to you were “Wow…what a talent.”  A powerhouse vocalist, a skilled dancer, and as you grew into adulthood and went solo, your sense of music…your innate connection to notes, the rhythm, the tone…it was all beyond exceptional.  Listening to your music is still and always will be such an experience for me, such an enormous joy for a fellow singer and composer.  Above all, you know how to emote with your music, whether you were singing or composing - your music touches people in ways that is rare.  There are great composers and singers out there, but not all of them can emote the way you have in your music.  What a blessing for us to be able to experience your genius through your music.

You also spoke to me on levels that were quite personal.  I happen to be a feminine Asian gay man raised in the West, and of course masculine standards here are no less forgiving.  The image you chose to put forth, the truth you chose to live - defiantly proud of your softness and femininty while proclaiming clearly that those characteristics did not decrease your value as a person - helped me.  I’m five years older than you, but your bravery taught me so much, and because of the example you set to thousands upon thousands of people, I’m now completely unashamed to embrace my own identity as a gender nonconforming cis Asian dude.  You taught me to LIKE the fact that I’m skinny, and a bit “soft”, and a bit “fluffy”…you taught me to be proud of being smaller and “cute” instead of feeling like I always had to strive to be hard and handsome like society expected.  This is not to say that this didn’t come with challenges for you; you’ve expressed openly that you WORKED to find some level of comfort in your identity, and even then, I imagine it may have been a struggle.  But the effort you put into trying to love yourself…just know that it benefitted me, and I’m sure others.

And I guess with that, I’ll segue to the central part of your being exceptional: YOU WORKED SO HARD.  You threw your everything into your music, into your career, into your fans, into your family, into LOVE for others around you and seeking to make those around you happy even when you struggled so hard and seemingly in futility to find your own happiness.  You persevered when you didn’t have to.  I once told a friend that I was so in awe of the fact that you did EVERYTHING with your whole self…even if it was just smiling or laughing.  I think many of us saw the pain behind it, but you still did it all with enthusiasm and EFFORT.  You put so much effort into living, and I think so many of us appreciate all that effort so much.  You gave us years of beautiful music, beautiful imagery, and beautiful smiles.  Even when you didn’t have to, you worked through so much pain to make this world a beautiful, more musical place…and you succeeded.  And we THANK YOU.

You didn’t do well, good sir.  You did EXCEPTIONALLY, and you will be remembered as such.  I don’t know you dude…but in a very real way (or at least a way that is real to me), I love you, and I’m gonna miss you so fucking much.

to you, who was always there, believing and protecting me i will tell you of this song filled with gratitude