Thirteen Days of Dark & Holy
…a writing challenge and contest
“My religion speaks of the old ways. It is the perfume of my night, the sanctity of my day.” — Karla Bardanza
The shortest day and the longest night, light and dark turn, reverse, and the promise of lighter days ahead will be fulfilled. As the dark days encroach so might our fears, we are told that evil lurks always in the dark and, until the turn of days, we cannot know whether this relentless embrace of the dark will continue until there is no day left.
What if this year the promise is broken and the light fades to nothing leaving dark night against a frozen world?
We might look to the stars, light candles or deck a tree in everything that glitters — to ward off the dark, the demonic, the unknowns hidden in the shadows. Warm ourselves with fires, feasts, and festivities.Tell stories of birth, hope, and redemption as we reflect on the year gone by. Raise our voices in song that the melodies themselves will bring light to the hearts of others, or mutter incantations in praise or plea or simple prayer for better, more fruitful times.
Here near the Winter Solstice our fears can cluster, we are in need of hope, of help, of heart to get us through. It’s at times like these we might ponder the sacred and the holy, what is precious to us, what soothes our souls or our minds and gives us faith or knowledge that those light days will come.
Is it any wonder that when they do, we rejoice?
Join The Mad River and 13 Days… to explore, to celebrate, to share encounters with the holy, the sacred, and the blessed (or the cursed).
This time we have a contest alongside the writing challenge. Entry is free
All details this way…
New to 13 Days…?
In October 13 Days and The Mad River ran a devilish writing challenge — 13 prompts and 13 days of stories and poetry. We were overwhelmed with the response — a bounty of wonderful fiction and poetry, from a wealth of talented writers.
Read them all on 13 Days and The Mad River.
And light a candle of inspiration for 13 days of seasonal joy & despair (gingerbread men not included).
The End (and the beginning …)
