Each year in the village of Wigden, people fall under winter’s spell. Citizens bundle up, stoke fireplaces, write cards, and give gifts. Wigden has its own butcher, baker, and candlestick maker. The candlestick maker, Albrecht, lives in a tiny cottage and makes all kinds of candles from local beeswax. Each night, he lights a candle ...

“How long has this sat here?” Valerie asked, blowing dust off a red and green box. “Probably years. My parents weren’t big on decorating,” Hayden replied. He and Valerie were getting ready to spend their first holiday season at his parents’ old home. The house was a gift from them to the newlyweds since they ...

Holidays are hard.There’s the endless streamOf shopping, gift-wrapping,Cooking, cleaning,And hosting relativesYou barely talk toAny other time of year.The kids are cooped upAnd going crazy-Which drives YOU crazy-Because it’s too coldTo send them outside,So you have to entertain themAs best as you canWhile juggling workAnd everything elseListed aboveWhen all you want to doIs enjoy the liminal ...

The days are endless as you prepare to house the children who never call home and host the cousin you don’t like, since she stole your prized diamond stud. But you do it with a smile, because it’s Christmas. Everything has to be perfect. The nights stretch on as you string the tangled lights, decorate ...

In 1859, Darwin introduced his theory of human evolution. He described “survival of the fittest” as the idea that those most adapted to their environment were more prone to live and procreate. Perhaps Charles underestimated that survival involves more than physics. Fast-forward to the present. Our intellect, ability to mimic socially desirable skills, willpower, and ...

Mother birds are among the most devoted caregivers in the animal world. They hide their eggs, search tirelessly for food, and stay alert to every threat. Their love is quiet but fierce. And when the time comes, they offer one last gift to their kin: a gentle push into the world below them.  Flying always ...

Not too long ago, the stars guided civilizations through the oceans and marked the optimal times to plant and harvest. People from all over the world used the sky as a calendar, a map, and a mirror for their beliefs. It was a compass, a clock, and an altar. Taking inspiration from both old and ...

In Egyptian mythology, Anubis was the jackal-headed god of the dead, who determined which souls could enter paradise and which were doomed to eternal damnation. Your heart’s weight decided the length of your sentence. Truth and justice in your actions would grant you entry into the afterlife. Older gods’ precepts formed the base of Christian ...

Yes, in ancient history, the poet Hesiod was one of the first figures to discuss love as a powerful force capable of emerging from Chaos itself and affecting both gods and mortals. Some suggest that hate is its twin sentiment, but I digress. Its sister is anger — an emotion equally intense and explosive. My ...

In my teenage years, I became obsessed with vampires. Bram Stoker’s “Dracula” with his unique talent of devouring the lives of others, resonated in my thoughts and dreams. Later on, my mannerisms began to resemble his. When I killed my father, I realized the energizing powers of draining a human’s vital fluids. Dracula used his ...