Winter Solstice....
Dec. 16th, 2013 05:16 amOne the only ACTIVE Heathen list/group/etc I'm on the Moderator asked what folks were doing for the Holy Days. I admit, I've Fallen quite a bit from my Obsessively Observant Period(most of my Adults life;>).
What I've been doing the last few yrs is alternating Disablot(Honoring the Female Ancestors and Family Guardians) and Alfablot(Honoring the Male Ancestors and Elves). I'm too Celtic NOT to do something on Samhain and too Nordic to "do" Celtic Rites so one yr I DB then and AB on the Winter Solstice. The next yr I reverse it. The biggest problem is Remembering which did I do last;>!
This yr it's Alfablot.
Even in the Heathen community it's more likely that the Female Ancestors will be Honored more than the Male ones. Probably sublimated unresolved Xian Crap causing reactions instead of actions;>.
Back when I lived in the Bay Area I'd blot with Mead for Disablot and Ale for Alfablot but here in "The Dangly Bits" getting Mead is pretty impossible commercially. You CAN order online but sometimes the Temperance Nazis will confiscate packages from wineries and such(even locally with 2 military bases we're "Dry" on Sundays, Easter and Christmas). Basically, I've learned to check with our local microbrew store 2 weeks before a holy day to see what they've got in and make the appropriate Choice...like a Pumpkin-Pecan Ale for Disablot this yr;>!
Cheers,
Pat
What I've been doing the last few yrs is alternating Disablot(Honoring the Female Ancestors and Family Guardians) and Alfablot(Honoring the Male Ancestors and Elves). I'm too Celtic NOT to do something on Samhain and too Nordic to "do" Celtic Rites so one yr I DB then and AB on the Winter Solstice. The next yr I reverse it. The biggest problem is Remembering which did I do last;>!
This yr it's Alfablot.
Even in the Heathen community it's more likely that the Female Ancestors will be Honored more than the Male ones. Probably sublimated unresolved Xian Crap causing reactions instead of actions;>.
Back when I lived in the Bay Area I'd blot with Mead for Disablot and Ale for Alfablot but here in "The Dangly Bits" getting Mead is pretty impossible commercially. You CAN order online but sometimes the Temperance Nazis will confiscate packages from wineries and such(even locally with 2 military bases we're "Dry" on Sundays, Easter and Christmas). Basically, I've learned to check with our local microbrew store 2 weeks before a holy day to see what they've got in and make the appropriate Choice...like a Pumpkin-Pecan Ale for Disablot this yr;>!
Cheers,
Pat