I don't know a person who doesn't like books. This being said, I also don't know many people who aren't Pagan and don't want to add to their already considerable collection. With this in mind I've decided to start a new tradition this year: giving books as gifts.
This meme on facebook inspired the idea:
Now giving books is not exactly new to the whole Yule thing. It's just not a special gift to get a book; it's one of the many, many ideas of possible gifts. What's behind my idea of Yule book giving is to make it a special thing to receive a book.
Of the three families I knew growing up each one of them had a tradition of giving out one gift on Christmas Eve. Usually which gift gets to be opened is not selected by the opener, but by the giftee. That is, it won't be the biggest and best of the gifts (which it would be if the gifted got to pick). It's something small like a music CD, doll clothes for a doll they already have, or a set of napkin rings which would look good on the table the next day. The gold jewelry and mongoose bike were the big gifts of the next day. These gifts usually are enough to hold over the enthusiasm of the holiday participants and give them something to fiddle with between Yule Eve and Yule Day.
My idea is to replace these random gifts with a book which is actually chosen by the gifted, purchased by the giftee, and actually given to the gifted on Yule Eve. They can then spend the time diving into a world of book rather than sweating the anticipation of having new things the next day.
While conservative Christians are taught that Christmas is not about the anticipation of gifts, that is just not how humans phychology works. We want things to help ensure our survival and berating ourselves for anticipating having our very real physical needs met just seems anti-Spiritual to me. I don't follow any logic that says you're not suppose to look forward to getting gifts on Christmas.
That being said, Yule is different for Pagans the same way Christmas is suppose to be different for Christians. Christians give each other illogical gifts from department stores and gift cards to places people wouldn't shop on their own. I've noticed Pagans tend to give practical gifts like books on edible mushroom identification, knitted shawls, and pressure canners. Things that are creative, immensely personal, and often hand made. Oftentimes Pagans will exchange magical supplies and statuary. Yule tends to have a heavily religious theme for Pagans whereas most who claim to be Christian don't even sing happy birthday to Jesus, let alone exchange images of Him for their altars. Assuming they even have altars to their Gods.
Pagans are deeply spiritual and open with each other about our spirituality. We care about and lean on each other's stories and information even if it's not from our God/desses. We reach across the veils that separate the different pantheons and often reach out to each other's God/deses when reaching out to our Pagan friends. For example I have three different deity images given to my by three different people, and they are currently on my altars. I didn't have to put them there; they did seem to fit. These people don't follow my pantheons and don't worship my deities; they saw something they thought I would like and got it for me.
Pagans are also extremely practical. We're earth-centric, most of us, and understand that the limited resources of the Earth are being used up at an alarming rate. To combat this most of us are some kind of environmentalist and deeply care about our impact on the environment. This directly correlates with how self-sufficient we become in order not lesson said impact on the environment. Which leads to our love of giving and receiving practical non-dust-collecting gifts, handmade gifts, and books.
Things to consider for your Pagan friends:
Books, of course!
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| In Portland Oregon or Online |
Such topics as Kemetic Paganism, Spellwork for Children, Kitchen Witchery, Book of Oven Dehydration, Seasonal Cookbooks, Gardening, Knitting, Home Disaster Preparation, Dog Training Manuals, Herbalism, etc.
I deliberately did not post links to specific books. Books are incredibly personal and there are so many out there that cover just aspects of a specific subject that it would do me no good to link you books which work for me (Women's Herbal Handbook) but may not work for you (if you're male).
You want to avoid giving them a book on Yule Eve that goes along with a present they won't get until Yule Day. If you get them a knitting book, but they don't own knitting supplies then that not only gives away what else you may have gotten them, but defeats the purpose of a book to hold them over till they got to open other gifts. This is why I like the idea of letting the giftee pick out the book and tell you what they want (or give you a list such as provided above). If you can't do that then use common sense. The book should stand alone or compliment something (a dog?) which they already own and have access to.
Crafting Supplies
We LOVE arts and crafts!
Clay
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| They can make their own altar bowls, pentacle, jewelry, statuary, and more! |
Craft Paper
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| My sister does watercolor and is perpetually out of paper. |
Depending on what kind of crafting they do you could give them drawing paper, watercolor paper (pictured), cardstock, calligraphy paper, and on.
Fabric
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| The seamstress, Etsy owner, fabric hoarder in us all. |
This works best when they are in love with a particular type of fabric (brocade is pictured) and don't mind getting random amounts of it, and they have the room to store fabric they are not currently using.
Knitting Looms
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| Expect to get a hat and scarf from this person on your birthday. |
For Pagan children and adults who don't fancy moving yarn around with sticks.
Remember: When shopping for anyone who is crafty to focus on crafts you know they already love. Try not to get someone started in a new craft if you don't know they've been wanting to do it for a long time. This could mean wasted money for you and disappointment for them. A safe bet would be to avoid things like Chinese Calligraphy Kits if you know they don't enjoy handwriting letters or even drawing. Use your common sense!
Practical Gifts!
Pressure Canner
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| Taking kitchen witchery to the next level! |
Owning a canner is like some sort of Pagan membership requirement. If you know a Pagan who doesn't own a canner they must be new. Help initiate them this Yule!
Recurve Bow
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| This image is Artemis approved. |
Nothing says "I love you!" like dangerous weapons. Better if they can bring down a deer and fold up for easy carrying in a tote case.
Non-GMO Seed Kit
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| Earth-centric religion followers are all about the heirloom seeds. |
Practical sense indicates don't get your friend a selection of goard and corn seeds if they live on the second level of an appartment complex. Stick with a variety of herbs instead. I have purchased from this company and they are wonderful.
Soap Making Kit
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| The gift that keeps on giving. |
Soap is a fun and personal gift, as a lot of people have skin allergies and you also need special equipment (not provided in kits) to cook it at home. Make sure the person wants to make soap and is willing to forfeit a pan forever to use for just making soap.
Practical gifts means anything which will help make a person more self-sufficient and less dependent on "The System" to provide. Pagans are each and every one practical people who go out of their way to develope skills to make life easier, simpler, slower, deeper and more fulfilling. Being able to bring down a deer and then can the meat are two skills which make you independent. To say the least these activities bring us i line with our Gods, who hunt and farm the land the same as us.
Handmade Gifts!
Recipe Box
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| Especially for folks finally in their own place. |
Craft stores abound with wooden boxes. You can varnish plain wood, or paint, burn or stamp designs on the outside. A clear topcoat keeps the box looking nice. Use blank index cards inside, print out your own, or buy special recipe cards.
Drop Spindle
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| Almost no chance of pricking a finger! |
Craft stores sell wooden wagon wheels and wood dowels. Most of them also sell hooks that screw into walls. Glue the wheel in place 2" from the top of the dowel. Screw the hook into the top. Measure down 18" from the top and cut it off. A kitchen knife can work for this as most dowel rods sold at craft stores are extremely soft wood. Technically you're finished now. You can paint, stain, varnish or oil the wood. I sharpened the bottom tip of the one I made so it would spin on a chair easier.
Coloring Book
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| Any theme they enjoy will work. |
Google search "Pagan coloring pages" (or any other theme). Print them out. Either put them in a binder or tie them together with ribbons. Make a cover page and a back cover and you'r finished. If they don't also cave pencils or markers you should provide some of those too.
Tea Blends
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| Tiny potion bottles of tea herbs. |
Everyone I know owns a tea ball so I really love the idea of loose tea in small jars. These jars are available from craft stores like Joann's and have cork tops. Tea recipes are available online, or you can portion out some loose tea you already own.
Religious Supplies
Selection of Herbs
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| For Magic, Cooking, Healing. |
I love the idea of putting some of the herbs you already own into small glass jars, adding antiqued labels (instructions online) and giving them as gifts. Don't forget to write the correspondences on the back of the bottle. If you don't have enough to share you can order them online as sampler kits and transfer them to bottles when they arrive.
Statuary
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| Go for authentic, not artistic. |
Sexualized statues only venerate the divine as recipients of sex and so I really don't like these modern takes on statuary. It seems almost all of the modern statues are huge-breasted, slim waist, rippling abdominal muscles, and violent. As if the gods were never anything more than ideal beauty standard contest winners. For that reason I would never give one of these statues as a gift unless the person said they wanted that one specifically. Those images have places on altars while that particular aspect of a deity is being invoked, but not all the time.
Spell Kits
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| Purifying detox bath salts. |
Is your friend going through a hard times? Do they need money? Do they need peace of mind? Do they need serenity? Make them a spell kit! It's not hard to find the ingredients around your house and recipes online. Bath salts are my number 1 make-ahead-spell-kit which has already been primed. Breaking the seal activates the spell and your recipient just needs to pour and soak. Other spell kits involve candles, cord, felt, and a variety of things. You can get supply lists and ideas online.
Magazine Subscription
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| Circle Magazine |
Pagan publications have been around for decades. Some of them are a hundred or more years older at this point. If your friend likes the idea of new ideas, networking, being able to unplug from the internet to read new information, and taking their reading with them (without buying a new book) then give them the gift of a Pagan Magazine subscription! A goodle search pulls up half a dozen well-known and reputable publishers. Be sure to get one that your friend would like even if it's not your own personal taste.
So there you have it. My Pagan gift giving ideas. I'm going to get a book for my sister for Yule Eve (a self-help book), and I'm almost done getting the rest. What I really want to get her is an 18" doll and dress it up to look like Lagetha from Vikings. I also want to get her a shirt that says, "The Gods Smile on Brave Women" that I saw on Etsy. I'll probably just make the shirt, if I wind up having enough time and money to do that (along with everything else).
She's getting me tea and dishes. I <3 my practical, Pagan sister!
Salutations,
Sesh
