I am not at home. I am at a friend’s house, having escaped the storm and coming straight here from work, rather than wait for aforementioned friend to get out of work before coming here. Nope. I may be a New England girl, but I do not chance the snowstorm. Said friend was justly rewarded for my intrusion by a straightened bedroom (I was bored, Yule is Saturday and there are only so many days and so much time left) and a cup of hot white chocolate peppermint tea (still obsessed) upon her arrival. Life is good. Very shortly, we will bake — bread (me) and cookies (her). I just love the week leading up to Yule.
Yule, for those of you playing the home game and who may not have been here last year, is a very special holiday that my friend Jess has thrown every year since 2006. Well, to be fair, 2006 was a hastily thrown-together joint year. The five of us who attended were all horribly poor, our fare was a pork roast that my mother had charitably given me, and we gave each other the smallest, barest Yule gifts because that was what we could afford. We made up lyrics to Christmas carols and decorated a Charlie Brown-esque “Yule tree.” It was wonderful, and I wouldn’t trade those memories for anything.
In the eight years since then, Yule has become bigger and better, as we’ve become older and wiser. Since Yule ’08, the Yule party has always been held at Jess’s house, and she acts as hostess. I pitch in with the cooking (which we maintain is the best part of Yule), but it’s Jess’s show.
The point of Yule is a non-denominational celebration of friendship, the holidays, and the return of the light. I am Catholic, and Jess is pagan, and our friends come from all walks of life in between. Yule does not align itself with anything other than the winter solstice. We do not have rituals, and religion is not forced on anyone. We celebrate each other, our friendships, our triumphs and struggles, our love for each other, and the return of brighter days. We eat food, play games (mostly horrible ones like Cards Against Humanity) and exchange presents. Dinner is always as sumptuous an affair as we can make it without breaking the bank. 2010 was the infamous “Turducken Yule” — and yes, Jess did make a turducken. It was masterful. This year is going to be beef Wellington (Jess) and roast chicken, for those who don’t like beef (I am providing the chicken, but she will be seasoning it).
Yule is wonderful, it is exciting, it is exhausting — it is my favorite time of the holiday season.
Last year’s Yule:
Clockwise from R: Sam, Jess, Tina, Drea, Christina, Joe, and me.
Four more days. I can’t wait.
Honestly, Megan 