Eliza Daley ~ Wordcraft & Musing on Home & Hope
for 14 December 2022 Halcyon Days Here is a phrase that seems to have forgotten its roots entirely. In our times, "halcyon days" refers to a golden past, a time when everything was wonderful. Sometimes it just means "youth" with overtones of innocence and insouciance. But this name has nothing to do with nostalgia. In… Continue reading The Daily
for 13 December 2022 Lucy Light Shortest day, longest night —traditional English proverb Before Pope Gregory tweaked the Julian calendar and caused a great deal of confusion, 13 December was celebrated as the winter solstice in Scandinavia. The poem by the late 16th century English writer, John Donne, “A Nocturnal upon St Lucy’s Day, Being… Continue reading The Daily
for 12 December 2022 The best food is the food you or your children make by yourself. — Mohammed in Tolstoy's Calendar of Wisdom for 11 December Sunday is cooking day in my house. I am off work and so have a whole day to do the long tasks. Conversely, on workdays it's very difficult… Continue reading The Daily
for 10 December 2022 10 December 1830 is Emily Dickinson's birth-date. In her honor, you might spend the day penning obscure poetry and witticisms. Or you could fall down the rabbit hole that is the search for the "real Emily", a person born nearly 200 years ago today. Apparently, there are questions of authenticity, not… Continue reading The Daily
We throw a lot of words around without giving much thought to meaning or physical manifestation. We talk about systems, iteration, interdependence, feedback. We slap these labels on all manner of things, but we don’t really consider the real-world implications. For example, we talk about economic systems, the interrelated networks of processes and infrastructures used… Continue reading Negative Feedback
for 8 December 2022 Green in December fills the graveyard. — folklore quoted in the Hedge Witch Book of Days Mandy Mitchell (Weiser Books, 2014) The Winter Sleep Moon is past full and now waning. At my latitude, we've hit the earliest sunsets of the year, 4:11pm. It's dark by the time I leave work.… Continue reading The Daily
A Full Moon Tale for the Winter Sleep Moon It was Sir Rufus's year. His straw came up shortest, so this year it was his duty when the inevitable came around. Formerly, the rather uncomfortable chore had fallen to those whom the Green Knight chose to single out with his inscrutable logic. However, several years… Continue reading Green
St Nicholas December 6th is St Nicholas' Day. Nicholas is an interesting figure, or perhaps collection of figures, as the case may be. The official Nick was a bishop of Myra. His legends claim that he was born in about 270CE to wealthy parents in Greek Lycia. While still a child, he was orphaned by… Continue reading Jolly Old St Nick
for 5 December 2022 It is Krampusnacht. Tonight, the long-tongued goat-man goes running through the streets, sometimes tagging along with the kindly old St Nicholas, sometimes striking out on his own, always seeking the naughty kids. He carries iron chains, a birch bough and a sack. Sometimes a good lashing is all it takes to… Continue reading The Daily
for 4 December 2022 It is said that nature abhors a garden, among other vacuums. But I think nature really hates holiday decorations. Or maybe any outdoor frivolity. There was that time that I hung 30 feet of juniper and pine garland on the front of my house in New Mexico and woke the next… Continue reading The Daily
By My Solitary Hearth 