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Dear Friends and Community,
For quite a number of years, at least 18 maybe 20, I was out of the loop in celebrating Christmas. I was a Jehovah’s Witness and we did not celebrate too much. I have no regrets with my time there. I align with everything being part of our souls journey to assist us in moving towards who we most truly are, and to the next thing we are to do.
It took awhile after I left to get back into Christmas. I am not sure what it is I celebrate, and while it is not religious, it is sacred. I guess I feel my way through the magic it always held in my heart as a child. I feel it can be an important stop in the year for remembrance, for reflection, and for renewal. It can be a real power house if we don’t get too caught up in the weeds of how it can exhaust us. To have Christmas, you have to do Christmas. It is not a pop up card that you pull out of the closet, it is real work, that can and will makes you real tired. I guess the trick is to have it feel worth the tired you will get, while at the same time having no expectation about how it will go.
And that is why I want to share what I most love about it, and why it works as a great support and reminder, but also even as a healer. I will do that down the page after the weeks schedule and upcoming events. I do have an announcement to make regarding the New Year’s Eve event. I have made the difficult decision to not have an event this year. And without too much explanation, I feel I want, and perhaps even need, to be with my family. My plan B is to offer a similar event in January. In making this decision I have done what I share often we all must do; listen to where our inner guidance, our intuition, is leading us. Mine has led me here.
And a reminder that on the calendar for Dec 20th is a Solstice Sound Healing. Please pre-register, space is limited.
** Sunday Dec 7 ~ 10 to 11AM ~ Rise and Shine Yoga (https://www.heartspacemedia.com/events/mindful-yoga-2025-12-07/)
Sunday Dec 7 ~ 12 to 1 PM ~ Gurdjieff Study with Myra Riechel / $10
** Sunday Dec 7 ~ 2 to 4 PM ~ Reiki Share for Reiki Practitioners (https://www.heartspacemedia.com/events/sunday-reiki-shares-for-reiki-practitioners-3/)
** There will be no Monday Meditation on Dec 8th. We will be back for meditation on Dec 15 th
Thursday Dec 9 ~ 7 to 8:30 PM ~ True River Sangha
(https://www.heartspacemedia.com/events/true-river-sangha-2-2025-12-11/)
** Sunday Dec 14 ~ 10 to 11 AM ~ Rise and Shine Yoga (https://www.heartspacemedia.com/events/mindful-yoga-2025-12-14/)
Upcoming Events:
** Friday Dec 19 ~ 7 to 8:30 PM ~ Heart Space Drum Circle (https://www.heartspacemedia.com/events/heart-space-drum-circle-2-2025-12-19/)
** Saturday Dec 20 ~ 7 to 8:30 PM ~ Solstice Sound Healing (https://www.heartspacemedia.com/events/solstice-sound-healing/)
Rooted in the Earth and Heart…
The colors of Christmas have always drawn me in. The reds and greens, and white and gold. And to appreciate their significance you have go back to the 5th century BC, when what was celebrated was Saturnalia, a Roman pagan holiday, that honored the god Saturn, the god of agriculture. There is lots about Saturnalia I don’t like, but so much of its symbolism I do. It was a celebration of appreciation for the earth rooted Evergreens for one. The coniferous Pine and Fir, Spruce, Juniper, Cedar, Ivy and Holly. These were seen by our pagan ancestors as symbols of eternal life and hope. They appreciated them as symbols of renewal. The leaves that didn’t die were brought into the home and decorated with red berries, and red candles, to symbolize the force of life in blood, and the also conjuring the light and warmth of the Sun back into the sky. For me the white and gold.
I also love that these were our ancestors. Not always belonging to a religion, but celebrating the cycles of life, the seasons, the Earth, and all it offered. I can feel them in my blood and bones. Over time Saturnalia was celebrated from Dec 17th to the 23rd. It put a halt to work, business and school for a week for visiting, gift giving, feasting, role reversals and fun! ” Hi,Lo (sounds like Yo) Saturnalia”, would be heard, just as today we say “Merry Christmas”! It also celebration liberation and freedom. And again, it would not be missed, that our souls were among the never dying symbolism like the conifers.
Also, I feel the red and green as the root the heart chakra. Christmas red is rooted in our biology, in our senses, full of family traditions. We can’t help but miss those that have passed, even more during this time. So not only the root chakra, but also our physical red heart where we hold both joy and sorrow. And then the great reminder, the Christmas green of the heart of hearts, the heart chakra, that knows beyond all else our infinite being, it knows and keeps record of all we have loved, of all whom have loved,from all our lifetimes. I feel this time of year sparks deep rooted memories, even beyond what we feel we can know. Something more than the want for more things, keeps this season, and its varied holidays still going. Whether it be longing or loss, there are symbols buried in them, that are meant to celebrate life, and remind, rejuvenate, renew and heal us. They, I feel, are not for nothing.
So, we will get tired during this time. It is inevitable. It is baked in. But I hope that with every glance of your tree or wreath, or candle, of the red and green in your Christmas, or in the colors of what holiday you celebrate, that you are reminded of the long ago histories they were seeded from. Meant to mean something for us. A gift from the Earth and Sky, to our tender hearts so full of longing for joy and peace.
The image above is a photo I took Thursday of the full Moon. Nick wanted me to take it through the tree. I love playing with photos and filters, and every filter gave me some version of red and green. And so it is.
Peace and Blessings,
Denise Yocco
Heart Space at Seven Stones
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