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The Cyclic Nature of Our Lives

© Myrrha

The sabbats or holidays that we Pagans observe illustrate the cyclic nature of life. The ancient peoples from home a great deal of Wikkan practice is derived celebrated the cycles of nature, e. g., birth, life, death, winter, summer, spring, times of want and times of plenty, nature's wrath and nature's reward. Times have changed a great deal, but we still observe cycles as defined by our social structure today.

How many of us don't wait for the yearly tax return for a little extra spending? Or, how many of us look forward to the annual holidays for a little down time from our work lives? I know that I look forward to the annual two-week vacation provided in December by the institution for which I work. Many families look forward to the summer break for primary schools to engage in activities to increase togetherness. One cycle I observe faithfully is the month to month pay-day ritual.

There are other cycles our society defines which we observe in one way or another. The voting year cycle (every four years), the census cycle (every ten 10 years), and the vehicle registration cycle (yearly). These are all events which we observe to one degree or another we observe and they also effect our lives.

I'm drawing on the various events on my life primarily, but I'm sure you can think of many routine events which you must "observe" and which affect your life to some degree or another whether you ignore them or not.

Now, the Sabbats as we observe them are celebrations. Many of the cyclic routines mentioned above are also celebrated. We do something special, we alter our normal behaviours, we diviate from the routine in our lives; but, that's what celebration is all about isn't it? An opportunity to take a break, to appreciate some aspect of life and living, and a chance to get in tune with our own rhythms. Though these socially imposed cycles are "artificial" in nature, they are no less real in their impact on our lives.

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