PDF A Birthday Party for the Sun - Pooka Pages

Yule 2017

A Birthday Party for the Sun !

Maybe you remember that at dinnertime during the summer it was still light out - but now when you eat it's dark. It's not that dinner's being served later. It's that, since Summer Solstice, the days have been getting shorter and the nights have been getting longer. But that's about to change! At Yule, the sun is "born" once more. It's his birthday and everyone celebrates! Starting with Yule, the baby sun gets a little bit stronger and stays in the sky a little bit longer each day.

In this Issue:

Storybook Chair - The Yule Without Snow Coloring Page by Liliane Grenier Elsie's Kitchen Elsie's Herb Garden Little Book of Shadows

A Letter from Scotland by Fiona Tinker Lullaby by Cia Williford

Sabbat Symbols by Momma Witch Carmen Coloring Page by Liliane Grenier WitchCrafts by Amber

Jimmy Meets Some Bullies - by Evelien Roos Wee Witchling's Read-Along

The Pooka Pages Magazine is published 8 times a year by Lora Craig-Gaddis. To subscribe, go to:

Elsie & Pooka characters are ? Lora Craig-Gaddis This Issue of Pooka Pages is ? Copyright December 2017 No portion of this publication may be used without the author/artist's permission. To contact an author or artist or for general inquiries, write to pookachild@

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The Yule Without Snow

Pooka stirred, rose and stretched 'til he was twice his normal length. He then quickly

washed his whiskers and gave the base of his tail a few licks before leaping onto the sill of the bedroom window.

"Elsie, wake up!" the cat sang out, happily. "It's going to be another beautiful day!" "Mmmm?" The little witch rolled over and cracked one eye open. From her pillow, she could see the upper halves of the forest trees and, above them, a clear blue sky. She frowned and sat up, swinging her legs over the side of the bed. Pooka scampered about as Elsie washed her face and pulled a clean white pinafore apron over her long black dress. "Isn't it great?" he exclaimed. "I can go out and play again today!" Elsie nodded as she brushed the tangles out of her curly red hair. She settled her pointed black hat on her head, added a blue ribbon and said, "How about some breakfast first?" The cat continued his happy chatter all the way down the stairs and into the kitchen. "This is the Perfect Winter!" he told her. "It's not all that cold and there's no stupid snow keeping me inside. I wish every winter was like this!" As Elsie stirred the bubbling pot of oatmeal, she disagreed, but kept the thought to herself. "No raisins in Mine!" Pooka reminded her. "Ooops," muttered the distracted witch at the stove. After breakfast, Pooka scampered out to the garden and Elsie followed. She noticed a few baby leaves on her rose bushes. Crouching next to the plants, she whispered: "Not yet! Winter will come and your new leaves will get frozen." The confused bushes pulled the leaves back into their stems. Nathan appeared at the garden gate dragging a slightly droopy pine tree behind him. "I brought your Yule tree. How 'bout this weather? I'm afraid, this was the best one I could find." "Let's get it inside with some water and see if it perks up," suggested Elsie. Pooka dashed over to the boy and asked eagerly: "After that, want to go sledding?" Nathan looked down at the cat. "How? There's no snow." Pooka looked puzzled. "We need snow to go sledding?" "Well, YEAH!" Nathan rolled his eyes and laughed. Pooka didn't like being laughed at. He also didn't like not being able to go sledding with his friend. Maybe just a little snow wouldn't be so bad? But then Pooka remembered that he didn't like snow.

As Elsie and Nathan pulled the Yule tree into the cottage, Thistle the fairy arrived and began darting around the garden. She fluttered over the areas where Elsie's bulbs were planted. "Poor babies," she crooned. "You need the frost in order to bloom. But don't worry, it's coming."

"Hey, Thistle," cried Pooka. "Let's go play "Chase the Fairy" on the pond!"

"We can't, you silly cat. The pond hasn't frozen."

"Oh." Pooka sat down and thought about this. He loved sliding and chasing Thistle across the frozen pond.

Maybe they could have a snowball fight? Oh, right. No snow. What could a kitty do for fun in a notreally-cold winter with no snow? There weren't any butterflies to chase. His catnip was nothing but a brown patch on the ground and no good for rolling in. He couldn't even go fishing with Nathan because it was still cold enough to make the fish all sluggish and sleepy. The little cat felt depressed. This was no fair!

That night, Elsie lit the Yule log on the hearth. The little pine tree glittered from a corner of the parlor and presents wrapped in bright paper were piled underneath. They had a special Yule feast and afterward, the witch brought out plates of gingerbread, cookies and a pitcher of warm, creamy eggnog.

Pooka tried to enjoy it all, but something was missing. It just didn't seem like Yule! Elsie set up their altar in front of the hearth and began lighting the incense and candles. "Edgar, will you put the Sun on top of the tree?" The crow took the shiny gold ornament in his beak, flew to the highest branch and placed it carefully in the place of honor. He then fluttered down and landed on Elsie's shoulder.

The witch summoned the elements, then raised her arms and began their ritual:

Oh Goddess of Darkness and Winter so cold, Within your womb does Springtime unfold,

Without the dark, without the night Without the Balance, there is no Light...

Pooka was only half listening as he gazed out the parlor window. Suddenly, he leaped to his paws.

"Elsie, it's snowing!" he exclaimed. The little cat never thought he'd be so delighted to see those wet white flakes falling from the sky! He forgot all about hating the snow and, somehow, magically, it finally felt like Yule.

"Now I can go sledding with Nathan and have snow ball fights and play "Chase the Fairy" across the pond!"

"Yes, Pooka," his witch smiled, "but, do you mind if we finish the ritual first?"

As Elsie lit the candles around the parlor, Nathan asked, "Hey, Pooka, which burns longer - a green candle or a red candle?" Pooka thought and thought about this. Finally, he gave up. "I don't know," he said. Nathan laughed. "Neither. They both burn shorter!" Pooka groaned and Elsie giggled.

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