Return of the Distant Goddess

In the Kemetic Orthodox tradition this day celebrates the Return of the Distant Goddess. This refers to Hethert (Hathor) who in the form of Sekhmet has traveled south in Her bloodthirsty rage. There are variations on the tale but in summary She is calmed and convinced to come back home. She is the Eye of Ra and therefore associated with the Sun.
You can read one of the stories at a fellow Shemsu's website: here









In modern times we can equate this with Yule in that the Sun is returning. In that we should make merry!

I hope everyone has a Blessed day no matter how you celebrate it. As for me I will be celebrating tomorrow evening.

Yule Season

I'm sure everyone is familiar with the traditional cinnamon ornaments?
Well, someone I know makes them with only applesauce and cinnamon so she can burn them as incense when she is done with them. I thought that was pretty awesome! So, I decided to try a variation of that using an actual Yule incense blend. I mixed equal parts of the incense blend with the applesauce. It seemed too moist so I added some flour to thicken it up. I then used a cup to cut out circles and my pentacle cookie press. I used a straw to poke a hole at the top and stuck them in a 250 degree oven for about an hour and a half. I used red and green ribbon to make loops for them. They came out excellent!

Yesterday my family played hooky and had a family day together. We went to the grocery store and picked up egg nog, cookies, and fixin's for Make-your-own-pizzas. I cranked up the Xmas tunes and we decorated our Yule tree.


Start







Finish





Despite it not being officially Winter until the 21st we are already in the midst of Winter here in Maine. I woke up to a temperature of 1 degree this morning. It is very icy everywhere which I don't much like. I can't wait for the next snow storm here. I enjoy the snow much more than the ice.

Here is a picture from our last snow storm here:





A winter wonderland!

On the EMPPD front we have been having lots of fun and a lot of success in our endeavors!
We completed our first photo shoot for our Naughty Pagan Calendar. There were many beautiful (and hilarious!) shots taken and we are looking forward to our next shoot in January.

As far as Yule in my house we will be spending time with our adopted family here on the 22nd and I hope to make a big batch of Wassail.

Blessed Yule!