Twelfth Night or Epiphany Eve - ends and beginning

If the night of Christmas Day is the first night of Christmas then tonight is Twelfth Night though some sources argue that Boxing Day is actually the first day of Christmas!!

However, the Feast of the Epiphany is January 6th and the night before that has many traditions associated with it, most of them predating Christianity but often subsumed into the 'new' religion to win people over.

Mumming and wassailing often took place on this night and the yule log - which was burnt throughout December as a symbol of the returning sun - was finally allowed to go out and some charcoal kept to kindle the next year's yule log.

The Christmas season does not actually end until Candlemas on February 2nd but it has long been the custom that celebrations should end by Twelfth Night.

Today is an ending as I have collected my belongings from my workplace of 14 years. I've no idea at the moment how the coming weeks and months will pan out but it is a fresh start. Wish me luck!