12.13.97

CAN THE SOLUTION BE SO SIMPLE?
By Jackie Giuliano

This time of year when the weather turns cool and the urge strikes us all to bundle up and retreat to warm places and comforting foods, it is naturally time to reflect. In winter, all of nature participates in the cycles of life. The leaves turn bright colors, then brown, then they die. The lawns try to die or slow down their growth, like any plant, but we try to force them to be green by applying vast amounts of chemicals.

Yes, we have much to reflect upon at this time of year as the size of the daily newspapers triple in size from all the catalogs and ads from local businesses insisting that we will have happy holidays if we buy from them.

Yes, we have much to reflect upon.

The U.S. Senate is prepared to block any support of the international global warming agreements reached in Kyoto, Japan last week. Virtually all of the Senate's Republicans and any other representative from an energy producing state will vote against the accord. The amazing thing is that the Kyoto agreement makes virtually no progress in reducing global warming emissions. The agreement says that the U.S., over the next 15 years, would have to bring its emissions to a mere 7% below their 1990 levels.

EVERY DAY, 78 million tons of heat-trapping carbon dioxide, only one of many greenhouse gasses, are added to the atmosphere! That is 156 billion pounds - EVERY DAY - from industry, our car trips to work, coal, oil, and natural gas burning power plants, and the millions of airplane flights that take place every day. Each day, Federal Express (I used them to send a package to my doctoral committee chair earlier in the week) has over 600 planes in the air. In one year, there are over 92 million commercial and private aircraft flights. Think of all the emissions from their engines and the fuel they use.

The Senate will not support any measure that results in ANY reduction in profits for the industries in their states - no matter what the cost. Do these people represent the interest of you and your children? They certainly do not represent me. Their allegiances are clear.

Dear goddess above, what is going on?

Who

took the dream
of the land

who staked down "private property"
through the soul of the deer

who
diverted streams
cleared forests
burned fields

i
seek to know
my own name

i
seek to know
why

after all that i have done
to her
does the Mother continue
to embrace me

-- Charlie Mehrhoff

How did we get so out of touch with the cycles of life, the rhythms of nature, and the truth from our souls? Everywhere around us the clues to the solution abound, but we keep ourselves so protected, so isolated, so shut down to the "sounds of the Earth crying" as Thich Nhat Hahn says.

The FDA recently approved the irradiation of meat as a way of dealing with the sanitation problem. It has been known for some time that our obscene factory farms produce not only intense suffering of the animals within them, but diseased and tainted meat. Thousands die each year from the effects of this abusive industry. With the approval of meat irradiation, though, the FDA is saying that a problem exists that is completely out of control. The classic Western corporate response to such a far-reaching problem is to do what is easy, economical, and technological. Even individuals wrestle with the problem when the solution could be so simple - try not eating meat. Yet our culture's indoctrination has been so thorough, so complete, that this solution seems outrageous to many.

Irradiating food will not remove feces, disease, and filth from the meat. No one wants to spend the money or take the time to do that. It will not stop the obscene meat handling practices that have been well documented by not only the mainstream media's hidden cameras but also the meat industry itself. It represents the FDA throwing up their hands and saying that the problem is out of control and all they can do is blast radiation at filthy meat. And no one wants to speak of the energy that is locked in the meat that we consume, the energy of the fear, horror, and painful death that every factory farmed animal experiences. That energy of death and suffering is just as tangible as cholesterol, yet not measurable by Western instrumentation. Walk down the meat isle of your grocery store and listen for the sounds of the animals screaming - you can hear it if you listen...

dear goddess
what are we to do?

there is so much
so much
so much
to feel,
to learn

to fear
to fear
to fear

i am afraid.

Do not lament,
My child,
For you are mine
and I am yours.

I am the Earth
And you are the Earth

And the answer
is really Blowin' in the Wind!

Go outside
Feel the wind
Feel the air
Feel the cool of the season
Feel
Feel
Feel.

That's all
That's all you need

Just Feel. Please.

-- Jackie Giuliano

The Wheel of the Year brings us to Yule, The Winter Solstice, on December 21 at 12:07 pm Pacific time. Astronomically, this is the time when the Sun is the farthest south in the sky that it gets during the year. The day is very short, and the beginning of Winter is upon us. In an age not so long passed, when we were intimately aware of our connections to this planet and our dependence upon the Sun for light and life, this time of year was recognized for its power.

How many of you have noticed that since the Summer Solstice on June 21, the Sun has, each day, risen a little farther to the south of east and has remained in the sky a few minutes less? The days have been getting shorter and shorter until on Yule, the Winter Solstice, we experience the shortest day of the year in the Northern Hemisphere.

Recognition of this time of year can be a powerful healing tool for us. Imagine how the ancient peoples of the Earth felt as they observed the Sun, the orb that gives us heat and light, kept getting lower and lower in the sky and the days kept getting shorter and shorter. The fear must have arisen that the night would get longer and longer and that the Sun would eventually disappear completely. What could they do but surrender to this fear and prepare themselves for the Winter. They gathered food, they made their families as safe and warm as they possibly could, and reflected on the bounty of the past harvest and the joys that might be taken away.

These people must have felt that they were receiving the incredible gift of life when the Sun began journeying higher and higher and the days got longer and longer as Winter faded. Eventually, this time of year became a part of the Wheel of the Year, the earthly representation of the cycle of life, a time to slow down, reflect, appreciate the bounty of the harvest, and to appreciate the need for death - the darkness - as well as life.

Following the cycles of life can be powerful medicine. Nothing, NOTHING in the universe is meant to continue endlessly without time to reflect, integrate, and rest. Nothing in the universe keeps the pace that we feel we need to in our modern world, our world of technological progress and the endless quest for economic wealth. And the cycles of life, the Wheel of the Year, cannot be celebrated with never-ending trips to the mall to buy love for our family and friends in the form of the latest electronic products or fashion statements.

So begin your Winter Solstice practice today. It can be a powerful time of rebirth for you. Here are some ways to integrate your self, your soul, back into the Wheel of the Year.

1. Use this time of year to reflect upon death. Without death, there can be no life. The tree in the forest must die to create new soil for the seedlings to grow. I lost my father this year, my wife lost her beloved grandma, my dear friend Wendell lost his mom a few weeks ago - we must reflect on these losses and find some way to incorporate them into our lives. Our task is never to get over the losses. We should not try to get over the fact that 2,500 children under the age of 5 will die in the world from diarrhea from bad drinking water during your hour on the Internet. We must separate the deaths that occur from the natural cycles of life from the deaths caused by disconnection and greed. Then what? I don't know. All we can do is try to become more a part of the experience of life.
   
   
2. For a week, become very aware of the rising and setting of the Sun and Moon. Check your local newspaper or visit the sites below to learn the times and really notice them. Don't let a day or a night go by when you do not go outside and look for the Sun and the Moon.
   
   
3. Yule is an old Norse word meaning "wheel." Notice not only the Wheel of the Year, but the Wheel of your Life. See the cycles that you have experienced. Look for patterns, trends in you life. Open your heart.
   
   
4. Understand the meaning of the symbols you surround yourself with and choose those that are nurturing to what vision you wish for this time of year. For example, there is evidence that wreaths have been used to symbolize the cycles of life for more than 4,000 years. If you wish to honor the cycles of the year and in your life, make a wreath. Don't decorate it with colored Styrofoam balls but rather, collect meaningful objects like leaves and pine cones and even objects from your home that are important to you.
   
   
5. Be aware that this season is not defined by the birth of Jesus. The day for the birth of Christ was chosen to be around this time of year because of the pagan celebrations of rebirth. Some historical records indicate that Jesus' birth may have occurred in the year 4 or 6 B.C., but the exact date is unknown. Although historians cannot provide an exact date, they are certain it was not during the winter solstice. This is a powerful time of year to reflect on the assumptions that pervade and define our lives.
   
   
6. Jews celebrate Chanukah at this time of year. This eight day festival commemorates the recapture of the sacred Temple in Jerusalem in 165 B.C. by a small band of warriors. The temple had been taken by Syrian Greeks who were using it for their own rituals. Inside the temple, a flame was supposed to eternally burn, but the Syrians had desecrated the temple and used all but a one-day supply of oil for the flame by the time it was recaptured. By some miracle, the flame burned for eight days on that oil, until a new supply could be found. The eight-candle menorah symbolizes those eight days, the triumph of light over darkness - what the winter solstice is all about.
   
   
7. The ancient Celts worshiped evergreen trees as symbols of the universe. The trees were considered sacred because they did not die from year to year as other (deciduous) trees did. Their lush greenery was a symbol for the hope that the Sun would return to green the Earth once again. They decorated the trees with all the images of the things they hoped the coming year would bring. How would your solstice celebration be different for you and your family if you used a tree to celebrate life and adorned it with images of hope for the coming year? What if you used a living tree instead of an artificially harvested one, one that you could plant after the holiday? Know the meaning of the symbols around you.
   
   
8. Reflect on the idea that the symbolism for death followed by life is part of the Earth herself and not part of any one religion. These symbols are a shared heritage for us all. Christians call it Christmas and the Native Americans of the Southwest call the Yule "Soyalanwul," which means "to bring new life into the world."
   
   
9. Feasting was part of the pagan celebrations, but only after a day of fasting and prayer. How would your holiday be different if your family fasted and prayed together for peace and healing instead of mindlessly eating until you can eat no more?
   
   
10. What if you did not eat the traditional - now irradiated - factory farmed, antibiotic filled, tortured and murdered turkey and instead feasted on seasonal foods such as squashes, beans, apples, and baked goods? How would your celebration be different?
    
    
11. What if, instead of the usual Christmas carols and mall musak, you surrounded your family with nurturing and empowering music? Try the music of harpist Loreena McKennitt. Her latest CD, "The Book of Secrets," is marvelous.

It feels so hard to decide what is right and what is wrong, what is death and what is life, and whether or not to worry about global warming or food irradiation. I think it feels so difficult because for generations, we have been taught not to feel, taught instead to feel apart from the cycles of the Earth. Maybe it's not so hard after all. Maybe it's as simple as noticing the shortest day and night of the year - and knowing that the day will get longer and the darkness will receed.

Earth isn't this what you want: invisibly
to arise in us? Is it not your dream
to be some day invisible? Earth! Invisible!
What, if not transformation, is your insistent commission?
Earth, dear one, I will! Oh, believe it needs
not one more of your springtimes to win me over.
One, just one, is already too much for my blood.
>From afar I'm utterly determined to be yours.
You were always right and your sacred revelation is the intimate death.
Behold, I'm alive. On what? Neither childhood nor future
grows less...surplus of existence
is welling up in my heart.

-- Rainer Maria Rilke

RESOURCES

1. Visit a really nice site about the Winter Solstice and other seasonal celebrations at http://www.candlegrove.com/yule.html

2. Learn how to not eat meat at the http://www.veg.org/veg/Guide/

3. Learn about reducing consumerism at http://www.adbusters.org./main.html

4. The Winter Solstice will be celebrated in a number of ways. The Paul Winter music group's National Public Radio performance is one way. Check http://www.livingmusic.com/solstice.html#anchor452618 for information on how to listen.

5. Write the President of the U.S., telling him your views. You can E-mail him at http://www.whitehouse.gov/WH/EOP/html/couples.html

6. Write your elected representatives, especially your senators, and tell them you refuse to accept their shortsighted, greedy actions that will take away your health and your children's future. Visit http://www.visi.com/juan/congress/ to learn how to contact them.

7. Visit the Animal Rights Resource Site at http://envirolink.org/arrs/index.html

8. Visit Ladyslipper Music for an expansion of your musical awareness. You can get Loreena McKennitt's work from them. They are at http://www.ladyslipper.org

9. Learn more of Thich Nhat Hahn at http://www.parallax.org/scripts/parallax/index.pl?funct=author&query=Nhat+Ha nh%2C+Thich&id=

10. The motions of the heavenly bodies are best experienced directly. Go outside and watch for them. If you want some help with sunrise and moonrise times and want to plan your seasonal celebrations, visit http://aa.usno.navy.mil/AA/AAmap.html for the U.S. Naval Observatory astronomical tables.

{Jackie Giuliano can be found celebrating Yule in Venice, California. He is a Professor of Environmental Studies for Antioch University, Los Angeles, and the University of Phoenix Southern California Campuses. He is also the Educational Outreach Manager for the Ice and Fire Preprojects, a NASA program at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory to send space probes to Jupiter's moon Europa, the planet Pluto, and the Sun. Please send your thoughts, comments, and visions to him at jackieg@jps.net}