For me, the Wiccan Wheel of the Year doesn't fit right, so I am searching for an alternative
I was wondering if anyone would like to share their opinion or belief on the "wheel", "the cycle of Life", etc.
I'm a big believer in looking at nature and situations around you. I still find it interesting that our school year is still based on the harvest, but how many of our kids need to take off school to work the fields?
I live in so. Cal. and like others have said, traditional seasonal wheels don't work so well here. Our fecund season is the winter. Our summer is the time of hardship.
Depending on your pantheon, y'all decide your calendar. Not all pantheons are nature-based, so you don't have to have harvest or planting ceremonial days. Maybe if you're very family oriented, you celebrate on birthdays and passings. Maybe your wheel isn't even yearly--maybe it works best for you working every four years or ten or maybe working around the passages in life, from baby to child to youth to... etc.
My point is, even though my pantheon is very much earth-based, yours may not be. Or your seasons and natural occurances will differ from the traditional. My four directions differ from many norms because of where I live: west--water (Pacific), south--fire (equator), east--air (sunrise), north--earth (all North American land north of us).
The cycle of life differs for daily, yearly, and life. It really depends on what you're focusing on. The days in a year don't necessarily matter. What matters is what's important to you and your god/desses.
~MakaniAhi