Welcome to the end of 2013, a time of feasts and of plenty, and a time to celebrate the successes of the previous year and prepare for the next one.
Our traditional social meetup this month falls on the weekend of the 2013 Southern Summer Solstice. Lets take this opportunity to review our recent progress and bring a touch of ceremony into our lives.
Instead of our usual establishment in Carlton, you are invited to join me at the special location of my family home, in Eltham.
The focus for the evening will be on reflection and refocusing - What have we done in the past year that has lead to our successes? What could we have done differently? How can we improve our next year?
We will have an opportunity to look at these from both an individual and societal level. There will be reflections on the progress of humanity, and participatory exercises on self improvement.
In keeping with the tradition of feasting, we will have a pot-luck and BBQ dinner. All guests are encouraged to bring food to cook on the grill, a dish to share, or a contribution towards supplies. If you want to opt in, post what you are able to bring - be it meals, drinks, or deserts - to the Facebook event invitation (https://www.facebook.com/events/436330916489443). Please RSVP by Friday morning so I can make final arrangements.
Following the feast we can play some social party games, including a thematically appropriate Werewolf game, modified to include additional characters to make it even more interesting. If the clouds are clear I will bring out the telescope and we should have views of Venus, Jupiter's moons, our moon, and the milky way. We hope to end the evening with a mindfulness session.
Come to 54 Scenic Crescent, Eltham North. Parking is available up the driveway, and we will offer lifts from Eltham train station. Arrive from 7pm if you want to help with the set up, and we will kick off formal proceedings and dinner at 8pm. Sunset will be 8:41PM, and the day length will be 14 hours 47 minutes.
Let this be a ceremony to saviour, while the days remain long. I look forward to your attendance.