Hello once again, dear readers, and welcome to the annual Holiday Double-Issue of Aphelion!

Yes, that means that we have twice as many stories as usual, but it also means that there will not be another new issue until February 2016. Long-time readers are used to this. New readers should rest assured that everything is fine, business as usual, and the Aphelion staff will be reading new submissions in stolen moments while we spend the holidays with our families. We do this every year so that we can take time out for those we love, enjoy the Season without pressure to ignore our loved ones as this year draws to a close. Deadlines can be a terrible conflict when this time of year roll around. We want to provide the best for our readers, yet we also desire to spend this time with our families and loved ones. And so this compromise came to be.

The Editorial Staff has been ransacking the archives to locate the very best stories we have presented over the previous year. They have also been just as hard at work on brand new stories for you to enjoy. This issue is the best of both worlds. New and Classic, never before seen and outstanding examples of past great stories. A blend of old favorites and new experiences, as befitting this rapidly approaching solstice season. Well, we knew it wasn't going to be an easy job when we began our quest.

Let us join together in remembering both our blessings from the past year, and the trials we were asked to face. Joy and sorrow, the good and the bad, yet still everything that life has to offer. Let us remember those who passed beyond, for each of us lost some valued friends and family during the year now ending. Let us also remember the births of new lives into our extended families, and remember to regale our children and grandchildren with the most wonderful of memories we can hold dear of any who are no longer with us in the flesh.

Fall leads to Winter, which then in turn leads to Spring. The fading of one aspect leads to the end of that time, but also passes forward into the renewal of all that survives the Autumn and Winter, to bloom once again in a glorious Springtime. For those of you who, like myself, suffered the loss of someone or something dear, rest assured that the renewal of the fire of life will bring new joys. Time after time, cycle after cycle, ends arrive and beginnings occur. It is up to each of us to celebrate, as we see fit, those cycles that end, then begin again once more. So join me in a toast to those who have passed from our lives, and in passing, left a legacy of amazing things. And then once more to those who overcame terrible odds, to remain with us for yet longer as we spin and whirl about our sun in the great cosmic dance of time. Then one more time as we welcome the arrival of new lives to our midst. Drink deep with each toast! Honor each life we now know, past, surviving, and new-fledged! All life is a gift, it's days numbered by unknowable circumstances, yet precious and sacred by virtue of being. Rejoice in that sharing! Revel in every moment we, together, possess. The cold of Winter may be on its way, but the warmth of Spring will not be long behind.

Cycles fade, end, and begin again. Live like any moment could be your last. Rejoice that you have yet one more day to become all you can possibly be. Remember those who have gone before, and pass on those memories to those who have but recently arrived, and those yet to be. Celebrate! Live without fear, strive without limit, BE! Yes BE, for in becoming we honor those who nurtured us, who helped us, who showed the way for us to reach the heights we only glimpsed as infants. Strive with your every fiber of being. Honor those who helped you become. Remember those who went on before, to carve a path in the wilderness so that you could have a better future.

Celebrate them, Celebrate yourselves, and celebrate those to whom you will pass on a beautiful future!

"Just go forward in all your beliefs, and prove to me that I am not mistaken in mine...."

BOILERPLATE:

First off, if you do the Facebook thing, feel free to join us on the Aphelion page there. The link is Aphelion Webzine. As an aside, the Editorial Mafia and I have found Facebook to be very useful. Given our different locations and schedules, it's come in handy as a way to discuss production details of new issues. Sometimes there are several of us using Facebook at the same time, so it's almost like the old chat room days.

Dan's Music Page This is my promo page here at Aphelion. All the links below, and more information about the albums, are located here.

The Never Bank On A Learning Curve CD on the Create Space website. My first album, with a wide range of styles and genres, covering the past three years of my working with the MAGIX Music Maker programs.

The Second Helping CD on the Create Space website. My second album, with just as wide a range of different musical styles, showing just how much I've learned in the past three years.

Dan's Studio-D Page on the Bandcamp website. Digital downloads of the albums, or each individual song if you prefer it that way. Just click on the album cover thumbnails and you'll see a list of each song on the album. Next to the song titles are links to read the liner notes, or to download the individual song. You can listen to each song for free. There is also a link to download each entire album at one go. I cannot say enough about Bandcamp! This is an amazing website. I have Rob, and many other friends, to thank for finally talking me into checking it out.

Here are some links to pages I have up promoting my music. When my book comes out I'll add those links to the promotion page, too. So far, there are links on that page to the Create Space Preview songs, the Create Space page for each album, the Amazon.com listings, and the link to the digital downloads page.

And here's a link to my Sound Cloud page:

Dan's Sound Cloud Page where all my music has been stored for your free listening pleasure. These are not as high a quality recordings as the ones on the CDs or on Bandcamp. But SoundCloud does have the virtue of having everything collected together in one place.

Check those links out, buy a CD or download if you like what you hear. And once again, thank you for your time,

Dan all my music has been stored for your free listening pleasure. These are not as high a quality recordings as the ones on the CDs or on Bandcamp. But SoundCloud does have the virtue of having everything collected together in one place.

Check those links out, buy a CD or download if you like what you hear. And once again, thank you for your time,

Dan