Fairy Tales: Winter Solstice and More

I am not one of those people who gets bothered by religious holidays being "corrupted" by pagan rituals and/or commercialism. Nor am I bothered by the (often cynical) declaration that some group created a holiday or forced a holiday onto another holiday--as, for instance, the pronouncement (by offended non-Christians and offended Christians) that Christians moved Jesus's birthday to December to take advantage of pagan celebrations.

Of course, they did! Holidays aren't "pure," any more than anything else that is deemed "cultural." Holidays are amalgams of different customs and impulses and needs.

Frankly, the hunt for "pure" anything is more troubling to me than the supposedly corrupt whatever-it-is. 

I admit to also having little patience with people who want to read meaning back into a holiday. I think saying, "This here holiday is a mishmash of religious beliefs and new inventions and commercial ventures and nineteenth-century traditions" is far more interesting and satisfying than, "This holiday has deep meaning and to prove it, rather than simply being happy with that meaning right now, we will force that meaning back onto past events to create links that actually never existed." 

I feel this way about all holidays, including Halloween. 

Human desires exist before the rituals and celebrations those desires spawn--which means that a holiday is more likely the expression of some wish rather than a sui generis event that demands a certain response.

One consistent, human desire throughout the ages is a holiday or celebration or ritual at moments of seasonal change. The solstice, which occurs at different times in the two hemispheres, is one such moment. (Harvest is another.)

This year, the solstice occurred on June 21st in the Southern Hemisphere. It--the winter solstice--occurs tomorrow December 22nd in the Northern Hemisphere. 

Holidays and celebrations and traditions attach themselves to this time of the year, many of which have been around for longer than just about anything else--snowmen show up in cave paintings and medieval illuminations. 

The reasons for such marked attention--the need to celebrate--are understandable. 

However, I had a not-so-easy time finding a decent picture book about the winter solstice that wasn't similar to adult books about pets: a little too cloying to make me comfortable (all that meaning!). (Children's books about pets are far funnier.) 

I did find the following:

The Shortest Day: Celebrating the Winter Solstice by Wendy Pfeffer, illustrated by Jesse Reisch.

The book mentions the Swedish festival of light on St. Lucia's Day. When my parents lived on Peaks Island, a Swedish family on the island would visit them dressed in the appropriate garb and carrying food. My parents were quite touched by the visits. 

The book ends with a short but thorough scientific explanation of the solstice and some science experiments!

The Shortest Day by Susan Cooper, illustrated by Carson Ellis

The picture book is filled with lovely illustrations. The text is a poem by Cooper though there is a short (meaningful) note at the end, which contains the following felicitous passage: 

"The Yule and the evergreens of my poem come from Northern Europe, but the candles in those Christmas trees belong to the same family as the menorah candles of Chanukah or the oil lamps of Diwali. Christianity and many other faiths share their intention; they are the lights of hope, reaching for the triumph of good over evil." 

While the Bear Sleeps: Winter Tales and Traditions retold by Caitlin Matthews, illustrate by Judith Christine Mills

I was not entirely impressed by While the Bear Sleeps. The stories are not entirely engaging. However, the collection is diverse and includes the charming Baboushka, the story of the "fourth" wise woman who becomes a Russian type of Saint Nicholas. It also contains stories about Hanukkah, Kwanzaa, and Christmas, as well as the Winter Solstice. 

I was reminded, again, of when my parents lived on Peaks Island. In December, they would attend a holiday concert that included a choir, people in costumes, audience participation, and, at the end, a rousing sing-a-long of Handel's Hallelujah chorus. So much fun! 

The more holidays the better!  

And the more Muppets--!