Greetings to all Full Circle friends and members,
In this December edition of our newsletter we have:
Apparently, it’s now official: Germany gets the award for the first holiday evergreen, in 1539 no less!
Unconfirmed dates for the first Tannenbaum, as Germany's Christmas tree is called, range from 1521 in the then German-dominated region of Alsace (today part of France) or even 1510 in Latvia.
The agriculture ministry notes that Christmas trees are based on ancient pagan traditions - not Christianity - under which evergreen branches were brought into homes as a symbol of protection and to drive off evil spirits.
It’s that time of year, and many of us celebrate more than one holiday: Yule, Solstice, Christmas, Chanukah and Kwanzaa, to name a few. Here are a few ideas for gifts for yourself or others during this season
Visit Mara Friedman’s Moon Visions Gallery for prints, note cards and other gifts.
Tiffany Moon writes that she has a new CD, "The Vampire's Lyre," which (because of its ambient nature) may be just the thing for holiday parties. To hear a sample, please search for Tiffany Moon in the Music Downloads section of Amazon.com, or visit her web site.
Another gift option is this lovely flower and herb swag. I made swags and wreaths one year – very successful, and a lot of fun to make. I highly recommend the use of a hot glue gun, however, for those elements that just won’t stay where you put ‘em. (And check out the Full Circle Events Listing for other crafting opportunities.)
EarthWise eBay? Why not? The Pagan Barter place lets you post and trade items or services. Check it out.
The ever-valuable Craig’s List community has partnered with Cole Hardware to pilot a WishList program for schools and nonprofit organizations. The program allows schools and organizations to browse the Cole Catalog and select items for an online wish list. Friends and donors can then visit the wish list and select items with which to gift the school. (Kind of like a bridal registry, only without the toasters.) Additionally, Cole Hardware is offering a 10% discount on all items purchased from the WishList. This whole thing begs the question: Does Craig Newmark ever sleep?
Green Teacher is a magazine by and for educators to enhance environmental and global education across the curriculum at all grade levels.
Want to make kids understand orders of magnitude? Show them the Powers of Ten slide show! Photos go down, in incremental steps, from the Milky Way to Tallahassee, Florida, to a tree, to a cell, all the way to a quark.
What’s bright purple, is shaped like a donut with a snout, and has been called a once-in-a-century find? Nasikabatrachus sahyadrensis, that’s what!
Looking for community in Southern California? Ace of CUUPs is the Thousand Oaks chapter of the Covenant of Unitarian Universalist Pagans. The CUUPs endeavor to create inclusive, family-oriented ritual gatherings for all ages.
Not only beautiful and exotic, the pomegranate is at the root of many myths and legends. Now scientists say it’s also a delicious remedy for free radicals. And boy, does it’s juice taste good -- $3.99 buys you a 64 oz bottle at Trader Joe’s
If you want to learn more about natural remedies and the potential of curative plants, you might consider taking a class from the Pacific School of Herbal Medicine in Oakland.
The Hope Line telephone recycling program at Verizon Wireless has collected more then one million old phones nationwide. Verizon donates phones, with airtime, to victims of domestic violence and makes financial grants to supporting domestic violence social service agencies. For more information or to donate your old phone, please visit their web site. This donation is tax deductible.
On a related topic, Impact Bay Area teaches women, children, and teens how to defend themselves against verbal, physical, and sexual attacks using minimal force but serious intent. Unlike martial arts, most people can learn the basic skills in a few sessions. Basing their training on the original “model mugging” format, this group offers classes at various sites in the Bay Area.
At last, you can explain to your parents what EarthWise spirituality is in a language they can understand: television. Lifetime is in final talks to pick up The Coven, a TV pilot centered on a group of witches, from executive producers Charlie Craig and Gale Anne Hurd (Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines).
Now lets see if they get it right. As someone who’s worked in the entertainment industry, I think the best we can hope for is about 50% … Anyway, it has to offer better examples of Pagan and Wiccan practice that, say, Charmed. And maybe it will be more inclusive about other branches of the community.
In Copenhagen, Denmark, once home to Vikings, the state Evangelical Lutheran Church recently “recognized” the 240-member Forn Sidra, a group that worships Thor, Odin and other Norse gods. Officially recognized religious communities can marry people and exempt their members from the 1 percent income tax that is imposed on members of the Lutheran state church.
As we move from Samhain and the Witches New Year to begin again turning the wheel of the year, it might be nice to revisit what these season holidays may signify. Read Yvonne Rathbone’s essay on this topic for one person’s view.
Ancient Explorations offers cultural tours of Hawaii, and Hula and Middle Eastern Dance tours. And for those into Middle Eastern dance, Desert Dance offers wonderful links for music, teachers, costumes, etc.
“Potency and Sin” is an article in Beyond the Pale about phallic carvings in Ireland. Lovely pictures of ancient sites and interesting data in an academic format. (Sia offers that Terry Pratchett’s "Lords and Ladies" has some things to say about the Long Man as well …)
On the other side of the yin/yang, here’s a site dedicated to Lilith, everyone’s favorite troublemaker, made notorious by her supposed unwillingness to assume the (missionary) position.
And in the “some people have too much time on their hands” department … The wife of a Dutch Reformed Church preacher in South Africa had a phallic vision and apparently it upset her.
Is your cat state-of-the-art, or do you need to upgrade to version 7.0? Check out your options under the humor section at CelticWitch.Net.
WORLD AIDS DAY - December 1st
According to a recent U.N. report, approximately 40 million people around the world are infected with HIV/Aids. December 1st is World Aids Day. Here is some basic information you need to know about the spread of aids worldwide and how this disease affects us now and in years to come.
Is there hope? Yes, there is. For example, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation has given 28 million to South Africa to fight aids in that country and recently pledged 200 million to fight aids in India. Melinda Gates has said: “We cannot beat AIDS in South Africa or anywhere until women and girls are protected and respected….That means being able to say no to sex or demand the use of a condom. It means ending rape and sexual violence. And it means developing new tools that give women the power to stop AIDS – like a microbicide.”
You, too, can contribute to the Global Health Fund if you wish.
Full Circle supports the separation of church and state. As a group, therefore, we have no opinion on political issues. At the same time, we urge our members to become informed and active citizens. A contact list for your state and federal representatives can be found here. If you care about this issue, now is the time to make your voice heard.
Sia
EVENTS OF INTEREST
We currently have hundreds of events listed on our California Community Calendar:
Here are a few:
And there are lots more. New events are added every day. Click on the Full Circle California Community Calendar to access a list of on-going and dated events throughout the year.
Do you want your event listed? Then please go to our calendar page and click on the link that says “Submit Event.” The on-line form is simple and very easy to use. If you have any questions, please contact our Networking Coordinator ScoutGhost at ScoutGhst@aol.com
The holiday season is finally here. It didn't seem like it was coming for a while there; 90 degree weather and people still wearing shorts just a month ago, but now it's cold and raining and just the way it should be. But even though the weather is normal for December, not much else seems to be, and a lot of people are continuing to feel the strain of our struggling economy. Businesses are closing, people are still being laid off or downsized, and many are having to find other options to take care of themselves and their families.
My own family has faced struggles this year, and we've had to make some difficult decisions. My husband, whom just a few years ago was earning a decent living in the computer industry, has now returned to school to learn a new trade. He finally realized that in this valley, trying to find work in the computer field, there was always going to be someone who was younger, more well-trained, and who was willing to work for less.
And so, with quite a large loan notched onto our belt, he's a full-time student again, and we've had to make some sacrifices for that. It's hard; I'll not lie to you. There are times when we have to curb ourselves. We can't run off to the movies each week, we can't buy our son every book or toy he wants. We've had to cut things out of our lives that we don't need. But because of it, we've learned something that is painfully simplistic, but so easily forgotten.
It's okay.
It's okay that we can't afford cable right now. We can sit down and watch a favorite movie instead. It's okay that we can't order a pizza. Let's make our own pizza, and not only be healthier for it, but teach our son a cooking skill as well. It's okay that we can't buy presents for our family and friends this year. A family letter and personal sentiments in homemade cards will be appreciated and treasured much more than a sweater that has to be returned.
The process of letting go is hard. Letting go of those things that nestle into our lives so tight that we think they're necessary to us. Sometimes it takes a hard patch to force us step back, look over everything, and pick what we need and what we can let go so we can go on. The tree has to be pruned to allow for new growth, and we have to do that in our lives. And not just with our finances. All areas of our lives should be pruned from time to time, so we can grow as well. Letting go of old hurts, old stresses, things that aren't good for us anymore. The tree sheds her old leaves at the end of the Fall so she can blossom in the Springtime once again. We can learn from her example and make a new start for ourselves.
It's only a step back if you let it be.
This time is a Fall for a lot of us. Whether we were ready for it or not, we have to shed our leaves and prepare for the Winter. But that's okay. Because in the Winter is when we can rest and evolve and make ourselves ready for the Spring again. If you think of it as an opportunity, a chance to simplify and reorganize your life, then when you are ready, you will bloom.
By Molly
This season brings with it a mixed bag of gifts and challenges. Before we leave you to celebrate your holiday, we want you to know that you are not alone in feeling the effects of the season. If you are feeling depressed or overwhelmed, there are ways to cope.
One way to avoid the blues is to reach out to the people who really matter to you and to spend time doing things that are meaningful. Forget what the world says about this holiday and find that still, sacred wood within yourself; that place where you can truly celebrate in a meaningful way.
Sitting here in the middle of our web, we hear everyone’s story. For example, we know of people trying to find a job for months and working at anything they can find to make ends meet while others live day to day, wondering if they will be included in the next round of layoffs. While some of us are coping with hard financial times, others have realized dreams or obtained prosperity after years of hard work. Success brings with it a unique set of challenges and responsibilities and these can be daunting, as well. No matter what your situation, it is important to remember that change, even good change, can being about stress. We’d like to remind everyone to pull out their best coping styles, along with their decorations this year.
Change is in the air and all around us. We hear that some of us are starting new ventures or relationships, while others bless and say goodbye to the old ones. Some are dealing with illness while others are grateful for their health. Some of our members are happy in their families and sharing that joy, while some work to heal old wounds and learn healthier ways of living and relating to others. All of us are coping with change, all of us are dealing with the troubles that war and a bad economy can bring and everyone is trying to simplify. These days, everyone we talk to is trying to take better care of his or her mental and physical health. The word we hear most often from folks this year is “balance”, which is a gift everyone can use.
The key to happiness, we’ve found, is to keep a sense of perspective and gratitude. No matter where you look, there are always people “better off” than you are and those who are ‘worse off’ then you are. The trick is to help those who need it, to learn from those who have some life wisdom and to use those unique gifts that you alone have to offer the world.
We want you all to know that we are proud and happy to be working with you folks and we’d like to take a moment to celebrate that fact that we’re a good group of people and a hardworking Tribe.
Happy Holidays Everyone,
Sia and SnakeMoon
Honor the Past, Celebrate the Present, Create the Future