Celebrating Yule was my companion’s idea; which is who I celebrated with! Yule is a celebration of the winter solstice (the longest night of the years) and the return of the sun. Before celebrating Yule, I honestly sat and thought about cultural relevancy. I asked myself: How does the celebration of the winter solstice and return of the sun tie into my African and Native Indigenous background? There was a natural understanding that my Celtic, Nordic and Viking ancestors celebrated the winter solstice and the return of the sun. I didn’t want to make my other ancestors feel left out of this celebration! I came to understand that the traditions of Christmas came from other cultures.

What I Did to Prepare/Celebrate Components of Yule

Leading up to the winter solstice, I sought to find congruences in cultural celebration to make my ancestors feel welcome, not excluded. I then decorated the place with lights, garlands, ornaments, and plants. I also welcomed a new plant child; Gaia.

There were other things that were included and will be included in the continuation of the celebration:

• Pine cones, pine, and sticks to make protection talismans. Respectfully hand picked and provided by nature.
• Yellow, White, Black, & Burgundy Candles
  • Yellow – Represents the Sun (Lit the day of Winter Solstice) for joy and/or clearing mental blockages.
  • White – Lit on the 24th at sun down to bring harmony, truth and new beginnings. It tells fortune and future.
  • Black – Lit on the 31st of December to banish any negative energy remaining.
  • Burgundy – Intuitively lit to bring strength, determination, courage and willpower.

What Else Did I Do?

The night of the Winter Solstice, my companion and I went to a cleansing meditation in Unionville, CT. Meditating and having my energy field cleansed felt amazing. This experience made me understand why meditation is really important. Further into the celebration, my companion and I planned what flavor the Yule log was going to be (gingerbread). That is something that we are going to do soon! I can’t forget about the fairy house! I would show my fairy house but I like to respect their wishes/privacy. Just think mushroom and cabin in the woods!

– Dez 🙂

“Here are the values that I stand for: honesty, equality, kindness, compassion, treating people the way you want to be treated and helping those in need. To me, those are traditional values.” Ellen DeGeneres.

Sometimes when you are feeling like you are loosing hope, the best place to rest your head may be on the shoulders of the men and women who have stood with us, stands with us and will continue to stand with us.

One Month. And I have learnt enough to realize that immigration wasnt just a republican or democratic talking point. Its peoples’ reality. The well thought out messages throughout last election were meant to be taken seriously.

Now that we can only listen to ourselves, and the echo from the walls that utters compassion saying, “You will be alright,” its sad to constantly hear about who is ‘illegal’ or who needs to ‘come here the right way.’ And now that we can only listen to the people who love us, as ‘immigrants’, people like me would gather an album of quotes and paste them upon the wall in their bedroom.

“What makes someone American is not just blood or birth, but allegiance to our founding principles.” —President Obama

“Remember, remember always, that all of us, and you and I especially, are descended from immigrants and revolutionists.”
― Franklin D. Roosevelt

“We are a country where people of all backgrounds, all nations of origin, all languages, all religions, all races, can make a home. America was built by immigrants.” – Hillary Clinton

Do I have a right to voice my opinion or am I just an immigrant?

“Citizenship to me is more than a piece of paper. Citizenship is also about character. I am an American. We’re just waiting for our country to recognize it.”
Jose Antonio Vargas

Its been a very long 24 hours and today is a very sad day but regardless, we are still alive. I’m getting up today and I am getting out to work as hard as I have been doing over the last couple of weeks and months. If you voted, great, if you didn’t this is the time to get together and make something out of the next four years. This is your country. Democracy is still alive and well. If Trump can do it, you can do it!

I choose to call this country my home and I will fight to make it my home though I don’t know what the next few months will bring. When I started my asylum case I had moved to a country that was lead by the first black president; gay marriage was legal in more than half the states in the United States, and America was entering a new era of human rights. Only, one year in and that is on the verge of a complete transformation, I now have to make my case in a country that is controlled by a complete conservative government, by means of the executive and legislative power. Much of what I believe in could be reversed.

The fear is lingering, the headache is starting and while I believe that through support and through the efforts of strong willed people, who will do everything to protect our human rights, whether as immigrants, people of color or LGBT individuals, I believe that every single one of us who believe in morals and good values have to start working together. There is hardly any room for pointing fingers.

Come the new year, many of us will have to fight for our freedom and the very least of our human rights. Many of us will be fighting to live in a country free of hate crimes and bashing. Many of us will be fighting not to return to countries where our lives are at stake. And many of us will be fighting for jobs and a roof over our heads.

Maybe we will be more grateful for what Obama was able to achieve in the last four years. I believe he will continue to fight for us. I believe that Bernie Sanders and Hillary Clinton and all the people we wished could be the next president, will continue to fight for us. I don’t believe that these good women and men will let the grace of America fade. Likewise, you and I. Lets make the next four years matter for everyone! For immigrants, gays, lesbians, single black parents and everyone who deserves a better future.