It is no coincidence that the three winter holidays we are most familiar with, Yule, Christmas and Hanukah, are Festivals of Lights. We celebrate Yule on the Winter Solstice, the shortest day and longest night of the year.

As winter solstice approaches, the days become shorter and the nights longer. On that longest of nights, our ancestors stood vigil huddled around a fire and wondered if the Sun would return at all. They lit bonfires and torches to entice his return at dawn. When at last dawn arrived and the Sun rose once again, they rejoiced and feasted.

Winter Solstice is the shortest day of the year. Yule is a holiday of light, of faith that the bounty of summer will return, and an acknowledgement of the necessity of rest for the planet and ourselves.

Decorating a tree with ornaments and colored lights is a totally appropriate way to celebrate Yule. You can also bring fresh pine branches into your home as decoration. Drape them over doorways, on your fireplace mantel (away from sparks!), wind them through the stairway railings.

Modern Pagan families celebrate in myriad ways that remind us that no matter how long and dark this night, we are not lost. The Goddess will bring forth the Sun God, and he will bring forth the light.

Thirteen Ways to Celebrate Yule:

1. Light up your house on Solstice Night to remember that the light will return. Use candles, twinkle lights and light a Yule log if you have a fireplace.
    

2. Send Yule cards. Make your own (kids love this) or buy them.  You can find Christmas cards that are patently Pagan featuring holly wreaths, Yule logs, partridges, etc. Pagan and Pagan-friendly folks will be delighted to receive them. The rest won’t know the difference.
    

3. String popcorn and cranberry garlands for your Yule tree. After Twelfth Day or whenever you take down the Yule tree, hang them outside on trees and bushes for birds and small wildlife to share.
    

4. Make a Yule log. A fireplace without a Yule log on Solstice Night is a wasted fireplace.
    

5. Tell stories. Gather friends and family around the fire and tell the story of The Oak King and the Holly King.
    

6. Decorate your home. Decorate a tree the day before Yule and leave it up at least until Twelfth Night. Make your own decorations and let the kids pitch in. Make a tree topper for your Yule tree.  Make wreaths to decorate your door and home.  Decorate your house and tree with cones, golden apples from the craft store, images of the Sun, Moon and Stars, Triple Goddess motifs, images representing the four quarters, images representing the wheel of the year, garlands and anything that reminds you of the season. Use lots of red, green and gold. If at all possible, bring in a small live potted tree on Yule eve instead of using a cut tree. If you use a cut tree, find out about proper disposal. Many communities accept cleaned Christmas and Yule trees to mulch and use in parks and other community areas.
    

7. Build a Yule altar in a place where the family gathers often. Place it on a coffee table or dinner table and decorate it with red, green and gold candles, pine cones, symbols of the Sun and the Triple Goddess. Include a miniature Yule log and other hand-made decorations.
    

8. Have a Yule Feast. It is customary to feast on Solstice eve after sundown.
    

9. Have a Yule ritual. Remember that this is a religious celebration, not a secular holiday. Write a ritual if you know how. If you don’t, modify a borrowed ritual and promise yourself that you will write your own next year.
    

10. Stand Vigil. On Solstice night, after the Yule feast and ritual are done and the little ones are in bed, plan to stand vigil to await the Dawn. Get together with other Pagans or Pagan-friendly friends and family. Serve wassail. Talk about the meaning of Yule. If you’re in a baking mood, start a batch of Yule Bread for breakfast. Bake a yellow cake or yellow cupcakes to celebrate the Sun's birthday.
     

11. Welcome the Dawn. Wake up the kids and go outside before dawn. Meditate on the coming light and say a Solstice Blessing. If you have little ones, stick a yellow birthday candle on a round yellow cake and sing Happy Birthday to the Sun as he rises. Celebrate the Sun’s birth with a breakfast of yellow foods. Serve orange juice, pancakes, corn muffins, Yule Bread, fried eggs, corn flakes and any sun-dried foods such as raisins and prunes. Use bright yellow napkins and set yellow flowers on the table.  Cut out placemats from yellow construction paper and have the kids decorate them.
     

12. Go outside and let the sun shine on your face.
     

13. Write an essay or make an entry in your Book of Shadows. Next year when you again celebrate Yule, you will have reminders to yourself of things to try out, what worked, what didn’t and suggestions for next year. If you have children, ask them to write a short essay on their Yule celebration and to draw pictures.