Hanukkah is called “The Festival of Lights”, but it certainly isn’t the only one – just like flood myths, festivals of light are commonplace in many cultures. Unsurprisingly, they tend to be held in the winter. It is one of the great joys of humanity that it responds to external darkness with internal light, but it makes me wonder what the origin is – the message. Is it defiance of the weather or the long night? An innate comfort defined by a basic human need? A reminder that winter is only transient? A prayer for an easy season? It’s an interesting thing to think upon while driving past all of the decorations. As children, some of us are afraid of the dark – we flee from it. Here, as adults, we appear to be taking a stand against it, however – repelling or perhaps even defiantly challenging it.