New Year Beginning

Posted on by Katharine Asals

new year fireThere was a new moon on the first day of a new year.
We lit a fire.new year flame 1We set intentions, scrawling them secretly, folding them carefully into small squares of paper in the middle of an elaborate arrangement of flowers and candies and grains and seeds and sugar and wine.new year flame 2The bundle burned slowly, the temperature low, the wood still faintly damp.
We chatted and waited and watched. Shifted away from the smoke and watched some more.new year flame 3A log fell suddenly, burnt through by now, and with the moving heat the flame rose fierce around the bundle, encompassing it quickly now, then fluttered small until there was almost nothing but the coals glowing hot still. new year flame 4Weekly Photo Challenge – Beginning

Published by Katharine Asals

Katharine is a single mom who likes taking pictures and painting and writing sometimes and believes swimming is the one true religion.

43 thoughts on “New Year Beginning”

  3. Awesome pictures! Yeah, it’s kind of like burning away the old year, and having the new one, like a phoenix, rise from the ashes…

    1. Thanks Spartacus. There is something about it that helps you clarify your thoughts and direction as you go through the process. The reason rituals exist, I guess…

      1. Happy New Year to you as well. WordPress stopped sending me all blog posts over the holidays… thought everyone was taking a break. Until I figured out that this didn’t make sense. Arrgh. Sorry if I missed anything. Hope your holidays were wonderful.

        1. Oh, dear, how annoying.
          Don’t think you missed anything from me – I was busy and partly out of town, so I was mostly offline.
          Dawn – you’re health? Doing okay?

          1. Yes, thanks Kat. Not 100% yet; sleep is the big issue now, but I’ve definitely turned the corner and I’m getting better every day. So annoying how long it takes to get in shape, and how little time it takes to fall out of it!! Thanks for asking. xo

  8. Salut Kat

    Tu es un véritable talent d’auteure. As-tu déjà pensé à écrire un livre ou de la poésie?

    Tes photos sont excellentes.

    Bonne Année mon amie

    Maurice xx

  14. Wonderful.

    There’s a folklore characater here called Saci (a one-legged, pipe smoking escaped slave boy) who get’s up to all sorts of mischief. It is Saci who plays with fire embers. He juggles them 🙂

    1. Haha! Truth be told, I’ve already forgotten my intentions (they were a little amorphous, I remember that much) but it was a beautiful evening, and I like these wispy flame photos, so yes, all good 🙂
      Thanks Tina

      1. Yes that, but also the composition with the figure silhouetted in the flames and the house lights in the distance giving both depth and context. They all add up to a lovely image!

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