December 22: The Shortest Day

Thursday, December 22, is the official first day of Winter.

The Solstice occurs just after midnight.


You can find the scientific explanation here.

In fact, if you are reading this blog with your young children, you might just go on over to timeanddate.com
and continue talking about the longest night and the shortest day.

For everyone else, here's a poem for the beginning of Winter.

First let me remind you of the well-known round in Middle English that begins: "Sumer is icumen in,
Lhude sing cuccu!  You can read the rest of the lyrics and hear it sung here)
With that in mind, here is Ezra Pound's poem, "Ancient Music"

Winter is icumen in,
Lhude sing Goddamm,
Raineth drop and staineth slop,
And how the wind doth ramm!
Sing: Goddamm.
Skiddeth bus and sloppeth us,
An ague hath my ham.
Freezeth river, turneth liver,
Damm you; Sing: Goddamm.
Goddamm, Goddamm, 'tis why I am, Goddamm,
So 'gainst the winter's balm.
Sing goddamm, damm, sing goddamm,
Sing goddamm, sing goddamm, DAMM.

Slog on, good friends,  through the long winter's night.

There are only two more posts to Christmas!