Good morning!
A very cold morning here; I have a steaming mug of chai next to me, warming me up as the day begins. Above is a photo of last year's podłaźnicka - an evergreen tree hung upside down inside the house. A pre-Christian Slavic & Polish winter tradition where people would take branches from a conifer tree and hang them from the ceiling, then decorate the branches with seeds, dried flowers, candies, apples and nuts.
Evergreens are ancient sun symbols. During the deep dark months, it makes perfect sense that the ancestors brought evergreens inside: they carry the magic and medicine of the sun. They are ever-green, they do not die back in winter! It is a plus that conifers are also very anti-microbial - a perfect ally for winter, the peak of common cold season. The conifers are protective and warding. Bringing the evergreens into the home helped to keep a space vibrant with life – not only do they release a lovely scent that fills the air and re-inspires us, but they hold the symbolic medicine of longevity, a green, warming flame to keep vigil until the sun returns.
Our podłaźnicka isn't up yet (maybe next weekend?), but it is a tradition that I have grown very fond of the past few years. We head out to the woods behind the house and thin a young pine tree from a sapling-crowded patch in the forest. The past two years, we've done it at night, which is quite fun: finding our torch for the darkest of nights. Something about hanging a tree upside when the world already feels topsy-turvy feels rather fitting. A tree for the ages! You don't have to go as far as hanging a tree upside down either – just bring a few boughs inside to illuminate the dark, if you wish. Let them sit on your kitchen counter, hang above doorways, help to cleanse the bathroom, etc. Bringing the boughs inside is a prayer in the dark. To decorate them with the dried fruits of the previous harvest year is a wish for the future seasons of growth.
To bringing the sun inside,
x Liz
