Cheers for the Winter Solsice! - by Judith Hudson

We are snowed in - a good four inches of icy snow. Don't laugh, northerners! Even though I'm in Canada, here on Vancouver Island we get very little snow, usually for about a week a year, and we are not prepared for it. 

It was really coming down, big fluffy snowflakes of heavy wet snow when I started writing this post and, of course, the power went out. For nine hours. It came on right about bedtime and on these dark days of the year that means a lot of darkness.

So cheers for the winter solstice and coming out on the other side! My Scandinavian blood rejoices at the lengthening of days.

I usually have a solstice dinner party for family and friends. The Christmas decorations are up and we light a million candles in fancy containers and old cups. Anything can be pressed into service. No electric lights are allowed except for a few dim lights in the kitchen for safety sake. I love it, probably more than Christmas dinner, and was sad to miss it this year. 

So when the lights went out, Hubby and I had our candle light dinner after all. Sure it was leftovers reheated on the barbecue, but even so, it was great. And isn't this what this year is all about? Making new traditions?

In most of the Fortune Bay books there is a solstice party. Really just a chance for the women to get together with a bottle or two of wine and catch up. Starlight and Tinsel is no exception.

Star is a newcomer in town and after she moves into the cabin she's invited to the winter solstice party. Usually, just for fun, Frankie gives someone a tarot card reading. This year it's Star's turn.

Here's a short excerpt to give you a taste.

    Frankie reached into her handbag and pulled out an embroidered velvet bag. She undid the drawstring and pulled out an oversized deck of brightly decorated cards.
    A prickle went down Star’s back. She recognized those cards. Her mom was a great believer in Tarot card readings, but it seemed every time Poppy went for a reading, they moved shortly thereafter. And Star wasn’t sure she wanted to move. Harry’s face filled her mind, and warmth spread through her body. Not only didn’t she want to move, but at this point she wanted to stay in Fortune Bay forever.
    “I don’t know if I should have a reading,” she stammered.
    “It’s just for fun,” Louise said.
    Not always.
    “We do it every Solstice,” Maddie added.
    Looking around the room at the encouraging faces of the group of women she longed to be part of, Star wet her lips. “I guess it couldn’t hurt.”
    Star focused on the rhythmic movement of the cards as Frankie shuffled the deck and her anxiety slowly faded.
    “Winter Solstice is traditionally a time of new beginnings,” Frankie said. “The end of the darkness and the return of the light.”
    She put the deck face down on the table. “Fix a question clearly in your mind, then cut the cards.”
    Energy thrummed through Star’s body. Excitement? Anxiety? She wasn’t sure which. The burning question was, Should I stay, or should I go?  Reminding herself that since she didn’t believe in tarot readings, she had no reason to be nervous, she cut the cards.
    “The cards are just an observation,” Frankie said. “How you use the energy they reflect is up to you.”
    That alone would be a challenge since Star had rarely felt in control of her life, but now was the time. She had already decided that her new year’s resolution, starting now on the Solstice, would be to take charge of her life rather than be a pawn of the universe.  
    Frankie reassembled the deck and tapped it twice to straighten the cards, then turned over the top three, laying them face down in a row in front of Star. “I sense you have reservations, so let’s keep this simple. A three-card spread.”  Frankie tapped each card, beginning with the one on Star’s left. “Past, present and future. We’ll begin with the past.”
    Star turned over the left-hand card.
    “Hmmm,” Frankie said. “Queen of Cups. Reversed.” She studied the card then looked thoughtfully at Star. “Cups rule the emotions, and love. The queen can be a woman of dreams, a nurturer and a romantic. But reversed, she can take it too far. Maybe letting emotions rule her life or nurturing to the point of not letting go.” She tilted her head to one side. “I don’t really think it refers to you. The past card usually refers to someone who had a profound effect on you.”
    Poppy. Even from the grave, Star still felt her mother’s influence. The room was quiet. Everyone was watching. She nodded, mutely.
    Frankie smiled. “Okay, let’s move on.”
    Slowly and with a sense of foreboding, Star turned over the center card. It depicted a young man sitting under a tree with three cups before him. A small cloud drifted toward him. An arm stuck out of the cloud, holding another cup. This card was also upside down.
    “The present,” Frankie said. “The Four of Cups. Interesting. More cups. And this one is also reversed.”
    She smiled reassuringly at Star. “This card is about taking the time to nourish yourself, to understand what you need. It’s about accepting love, but reversed it has the added suggestion that a new direction is open to you. And, being cups, that could be new love.”
    “Finally,” Louise said with satisfaction. “Here we go. Anyone we know?”
    Star felt herself blush and was glad for the dim, candle-lit room. She glanced at Lily, who had mentioned the day before that Harry hadn’t been at the farm much and had wondered pointedly if Star knew where he’d been, even though she must have known they were spending time together. Star had dodged the question, but now could see Lily holding back a smile and hoped she wouldn’t spill the beans.
    “The future,” Frankie intoned, bringing everyone’s attention back to the cards. “The Ten of Cups. More cups. More joy, fulfillment and family.” She shook her head and smiled.  “I love readings with happy endings. I’d say it all means your cup is going to runneth over.”
    It was just a tarot reading, but it was crazy how closely it reiterated the things Star had been thinking herself lately. She shivered and looked around the candle-lit room at the faces of the women who were becoming friends, and hoped there was something to these readings after all.

If you want to read more, Starlight and Tinsel, 

a 120  page e-book novella, 

is on sale for 99¢ until the end of the month on Amazon.

Take care, stay safe, and treat yourself kindly. Have a happy holiday.

 

 

Bingeing on Comfort Food, by Judith Hudson

Today it is bright and sunny. A real gift in late November here on Vancouver Island. But cloudless days mean cold days, and that means soup for lunch.

I surprise myself by how often I write about food and cooking in my Fortune Bay books! It seems when I want to show a connection between characters or a sense of stability, I often include comfort food in the scene.  

I don’t consider myself a foody, but we have always enjoyed big family meals, and all of our family gatherings seem to happen over a meal.

Last winter my sister came out from Ontario for a visit here on the Island, and together we went to visit our brother on Salt Spring Island, a short ferry ride away. Because our elderly mother lives near me, we usually visit here, so it was nice on that sunny January, pre-Covid day, to go to his house in the forest for lunch. His wife Susheela served a hearty soup that was a revelation to me. Although I often make soup, it’s usually chicken-noodle, and now that my husband and I are on a strict no-wheat diet, the soups were looking a little thin.

The soup Susheela served that day was wonderful. Thick and creamy with aromatic eastern spices. I phoned her the next day to get the recipe and was happy to learn it was perfect for my husband’s Parkinson’s-fighting diet. Since she gave me  the recipe over the phone, it may have changed a bit in the sharing, but I’ve always been a what’s-in-the-fridge kind of cook anyway, and so is she. 

I called it Coconut Lentil Soup. Now, don’t let the coconut part scare you. It's the secret ingredient! It refers to the canned coconut milk you stir in at the end to thicken the soup and make it deliciously creamy.
 

Here’s the recipe: (Print it out from my website)

Sauté, in lots of ghee (Susheela) or olive oil (me) –
1/2 a large onion – chopped to dice
2 cloves of garlic, diced
2 tbsp curry powder – or to taste. (Our new curry powder is really hot! so I’ve since reduced the amount.)
1 tsp ground cumin
 

Add 4 cups chopped vegetables – Winter vegetables like carrots, turnip, cauliflower, celery, broccoli, kale, potato or sweet potato work well. Whatever you have in your fridge.
Add broth (home made is best of course. I save chicken bones and veggie bits in bags in the freezer and cook them up every few weeks. Makes the kitchen smell devine!)
Then add the lentils. Red or brown. Canned would be fine.
 

I like it a little chunky so when the vegetables are soft I put about 1/3 of it in the blender, or use my immersion blender until the soup is the thickness and smoothness I like. Then add
½ a large can, (or one small can) of high fat coconut milk to add the final creaminess.  
Season with Salt and pepper.

A hearty soup, made from scratch, it warms you from the inside out. I think I’ll make some today.

Find the print recipe here.

Do you make soup from scratch? It's not as hard as you may think. What’s your favourite?

Canadian Thanksgiving was in October, but I want to wish all our American friends a happy holiday. We used to be 14 for Thanksgiving, always at our house, but now our numbers have dwindled and this year we were five. Probably a good thing in these days of Covid lockdowns.

And next month will be Christmas! Oh my! 

To get a jump on your Christmas reading get Starlight and Tinsel, a Fortune Bay Christmas novella, on sale on Amazon from now until Christmas for 99¢.

Stay home, keep your gathering small and above all, stay safe.

Have a happy Thanksgiving.

Judy Hudson