### Invitation
[[Image:Milky_Way_from_Wikipedia.jpg|200px|thumb|right|Gazing out into the skies
On the eve of the longest night.
Here we dream with open eyes
On the eve of a holy night.
-- [Malcolm Dalglish, lyrics to "Psalm of Solstice" from the album *Hymnody of Earth*](http://www.ket.org/education/guides/hymnody.pdf)
By far the best way I know to engage the religious sensibility, the sense of awe, is to look up on a clear night.
-- Carl Sagan, *The Varieties of Scientific Experience* ]]
Longest Night Masquerade, a celebration of the Winter Solstice.
6:30pm PST December 21, 2014 at the Seed Village (1824 SE Oak St) in Portland Oregon.
Please join us for a family friendly winter solstice festival on the longest night of the year. Wear a mask and/or a costume for extra fun!
We'll sing solstice songs, burn a yule log (and a galaxy plate), and drink some egg nog. There will also be finger food snacks and non-alcoholic beverages.
In terms of day length, it's all uphill from there, but there is an advantage to the darkness: you can see the stars! This year there will be *lots* of stars because the New Moon falls on the same day. Weather permitting we plan to make a late night journey out to crown point or another suitable location to look at the stars.
### Planning
Relevant times
- Moment of Solstice is 3:03 PM
- Sunset is 4:20 PM
- Party starts at 6:30 PM