Yule is a special time of retreat for me (and many others). I am grateful for the ability to take the full twelve days off, starting with the Winter solstice and reemerging with the new calendar year. Befitting of the moment, the winter solstice coincides with the start of Capricorn season—and so in the Northern hemisphere, we experience the darkest days of the year, and enjoy the renewal that comes with hibernation and retreat.

During the last days of Yule, I enjoy my annual tradition of watching The Lord of the Rings (extended version) with loved ones, letting these beloved characters carry me through reflections about the past year into the journey of a new year. I take simple joy in knowing the creator of this world, J.R.R. Tolkien, was also a Capricorn, and so I especially associate some of the story’s many lessons with Saturn, Capricorn’s planetary ruler.

Those who toil must also rest.

I want to see mountains again, Gandalf – mountains; and then find somewhere where I can rest. In peace and quiet, without a lot of relatives prying around, and a string of confounded visitors hanging on the bell. I might find somewhere where I can finish my book. I have thought of a nice ending for it: and he lived happily ever after to the end of his days.’

The Fellowship of the Ring, J.R.R. Tolkien

This time around, I was especially looking forward to a period of rest after a particularly busy season at work—which began as I experienced my first bout of COVID. As I slowly rebuilt my baseline energy level over the next couple months, each day scattered and spent my energy across seemingly countless requests for attention and care—intensifying my protectiveness of that energy and desire to withdraw. Saturn reminds us that it is against our nature to consume resources without limits. We must rest, even if it’s just a moment to close our eyes and take a slow breath.

Tolkien understood the importance of rest in his storytelling. As much as the characters move across Middle Earth, they are stopping, pausing, sleeping, waiting, feeding, drinking—or longing for all of the above. The book’s masterful translation to screen takes into account that the audience will be digesting long parts of interwoven journeys in one sitting. And so understandably, for the sake of efficient storytelling, the movie excludes many of the book’s references to rest, leisure, and idle time. This includes many of the moments where characters pause to sleep, eat, and think that do not further the plot, many of the verses that characters sing (over 60 poems and songs), and the hobbits’ brief interlude with Tom Bombadil.

Endurance requires hope.

All that said, my favorite moment of rest appears in the movies when Sam and Frodo are so close to the peaks of Mt. Doom and the completion of Frodo’s task. Frodo collapses from the toil of the climb, and Sam cradles him in his arms, recalling all that is home—all that is sweet and nourishing in the Shire.

Do you remember the Shire, Mr. Frodo? It’ll be spring soon. And the orchards will be in blossom. And the birds will be nesting in the hazel thicket. And they’ll be sowing the summer barley in the lower fields—and eating the first of the strawberries with cream. Do you remember the taste of strawberries?

The Return of the King (2003)

While Frodo has quite honestly been through it by this point, Sam is able to muster up images of what was, what is, and what could be—a beautiful formula for brewing up hope during an especially dark time. It’s a wonderful reminder that even nourishing yourself in the thought of strawberries can inspire you to move across mountains.

For better or for worse, time keeps us accountable.

Saturn is our timekeeper. In Greek mythology, Saturn was also known as the titan Kronos, the Greek word meaning “time,” and ruled over abundance and the harvest. Give Saturn an hour or a season, and Saturn will show you all the things that are possible (or not) with hard work. Saturn creates value from a set of conditions. Give Saturn a structure, and it will show you what it means. In my high school english class, this was how we analyzed literature: FORM = MEANING.

In our day to day lives, this might be how we take stock of our work week, our weekends, our vacations, and other periods of time, judging ourselves in our more punishing moods if we lost track of time and weren’t able to do all the things we wanted. During Yuletide, we reflect on the past year, and make a resolution for the upcoming one, purposefully intending to see that promise through.

More recently, the boss level of these reflections has been the “unprecedented times.” Pick any of them: What choices have you made? What meaning are you trying to make? Who are you listening to, and with what attention and care? When have you taken action and when have you paused to think? What sacrifices have you had to make? How are you integrating these experiences? These questions feel heavier than during “precedent times” because the stakes have been higher.

Hands down, Frodo was living through quite unprecedented times for a quiet hobbit of the Shire. There is great evil growing, and he has come into possession of the One Ring, the nucleus of its power. As ringbearer, Frodo must endure its burden as he seeks to destroy it. Understandably, he wishes this reality wasn’t true.

‘I wish it need not have happened in my time,’ said Frodo.

‘So do I,’ said Gandalf, ‘and so do all who live to see such times. But that is not for them to decide. All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given us.’

The Fellowship of the Ring, J.R.R. Tolkien

Frodo did not ask for this set of circumstances, and yet it is his confrontation of the times that test and measure the depth of his character. Saturn knows that time holds us accountable and that we are not without power, as long as we make use of the resources at our disposal. So as we continue to confront our current moment, may you remember the resources at your disposal—whether it is time, knowledge, community, connection, or more. I’m wishing you rest, hope, and strength in the new year. ✨