What December 2023 Means To Me

This December was a strange month, there was hardly any frost at all throughout the month. It was very cloudy during the very short days. It felt like it was more dark than normal. There was lots of wind and lots of rain; on the upside, we didn't spend much on our heating. During the Darkest part of the month there was a mass shooting in Prague, the capital city of the Czech Republic ("Check republic") I don't  know why he did it;  at the same time a volcano erupted in Iceland, I was astonished by the sight of it, a river of lava and a  geyser of fire. The world we live in is amazing. 

When it is very dark, I think of the blackjack card game because the goal of the game is to stay below 21, the 21st of December is the darkest day. The word black is used to describe darkness. 

I looked at the new year ahead and thought I should play more and watch TV more because time goes by so fast, it seemed not long ago that I watched the new year celebrations for 2023. Play more computer games, eat more vegetables and watch more TV, do what you need to do and leave time aside for leisure. A friend of mine passed away this month, he was the same age as me, he was killed in a traffic incident. I don't know how long I have left, I could live on for longer or I could pass away in one second. 

Christmas 2023

Two major events that stood out just before Christmas was the Prague mass shooting and Iceland volcanic eruption. They're both shocking events that occurred close to Christmas during the  darkest part of the year. 

Prague is the Capital of the Czech Republic (🗣️ "Check Republic"), a small country sandwiched between Austria, Poland, Germany and Slovakia in the centre of Europe. I think it is an interesting place to visit. I won't try to name the assailant because fame may have been his motive, we don't know why he did it. He shot his Dad first so I don't think he was following a cult. Most religions promote the respect of your parents. 

Iceland is full of volcanoes, I think they even use geothermal heat to fuel their power stations. Britain is close to Iceland, it is about 1000 km from Britain. I think this recent eruption came from a fissure vent. 

Iceland Erupts

During the darkest shortest days of 2023, the 18th of December until now, there was an volcanic eruption on the island of Iceland. The eruption occurred in the Reykjanes Peninsular in the south west corner of the island. It was an amazing sight, I saw on the TV a river of lava and hot rocks spewing out across the landscape. It looked like Donte's description of hell. 

I just realised that Britain is the nearest European country to Iceland, Greenland is closer but it is on the American continent. Iceland is just over 1000 kilometres away from my island. Perhaps I could visit Iceland one day. Perhaps in the summer when they have very long days. 

Tomorrow the day will be about half a minute longer than today. Every day from this point onwards will be longer. It will take a few months before we notice it though.