Five Mile Beach weekly journal., 1914-12-04
X.
The Turn.

~HEN the turn of the year comes
in; the year begins to mount.
~ Birth is in 1t; growth is In IL;
spring lis In 1t. Sometimes.
away back in beginnings. they knew
this. They knew that the time Of
the winter solstice Is In some strange
fashion the high momen Of the year.
as the beginning Of new activity in
nature and In the gods. They sol
emnized the return Of the fiery sun
wheel; they traced in those solstice
days the operations on earth of Odin
and Berchta; they knew in themselves
a thing they could not name. and
when the supreme experience took
place In Christ they made the n ex-
perience typify the other and became
conscious of the divine nature of this
nativity. So, by the illuminate. the
prophets. the adopts. the time that fol-
lowed was yearly set ~aside-forty days
of dwelling within the temple Of self.
forty days of reverence for being. of
consciousness of new birth. Then the
emergence. then the a~potheosis of X
preston typifying and typihed by
spring-the time when bursting. press
ing life almost breaks bounds. when
birth and the impulse to birth arc In
every form of life, without and within.
These festivals are not arbitrary In
date. They grow out of the universal
experience.
Is it not then cause for stupefaction
that this time of divine bestowal"
should have become so physical a
thing? From the ancient perception.
to have slipped into a sense of annual
social c~omradeship and good will and
peace was natural and fine-to live in
In the large. But from this to have
plunged down into a time Of frantic
physical ~bestowals. Of present trad
ing" Of lists of Grace and Margaret
and Philip. OF teeming shops with
hunting and hunted creatures within.
Of sacrifcial trees and beasts, of a
sovereign sens of good for me and
mine and a shameless show of Lord
and Lady Bountiful--how can that
have come about? How can the great
festival have been so dishonored?
Not all dishonored. for within 1t is
its W vitality which nothing can dis
honor. Through all the curious varia-
tons which it receives at our hands.
something shines and sings; self CIV
ing, joy giving. a vast, dim upficker-
ing on humanity of what this thing
really is that 1t seeks to observe, this
thing that grips men so that nc mat
ter what they are about. they will drop
1t at the touch of the gong and turn
to Some expression, however crooked
the time. II in war, then bayonets
are stacked and holly w~reathed. and
candles stuck on each point! II at e
some sailor climbs out on the bow
spirit with a wreath Of green. II on
the western plains a turkey wishbone
for target will make the sport, at fifty
PAGES; II at home. some great extrav-
agance or ONE humble gift or some
poignant wish will point the day. II
at church. then mass and carol; In GER
tain hearts reverence. Everywhere
the time takes hold of folk and re-
ceives whatever of greatness Or gro
tesqueness they choose to give 1t. So.
too. the actual and vital experience
which it brings to humanity is uniyer-
sal, is offered with cosmic regularity.
cannot be escaped. Through all the
tumult of the time Christmas week
and the time that lies near to it is al
ways waiting to claim its own. to take
to itself those who will not be deceiy-
ed. who see ia the stupendous yearly
pageant only the usual spectacle Of hui
mainly trying to say divine things in
terms Of things physical, because the