We have a common thread that is shared no matter where you live or what lands your family of origin came from. Each of us has a bloodline connecting us to Ancestors from long ago, who had invested relationships with the natural world.
Winter Solstice usually happens on December 21, when the shortest day and the longest night prevail, although it can also land anywhere from December 20-23 since the Earth doesn’t travel at a steady rate around the Sun.
As the days grow shorter and darker here in the Northern Hemisphere, we come to a time which fosters remembrance of those days long ago, when the Earth’s rhythm spoke to us, invited us to slow down and turn inward just as the visible world around us does at each Winter.
There was a time when uncertainty held a grasp upon the psyche, wondering if the Sun’s light would return. Would life return to the Earth? Would Spring come once again? These questions ruled our Ancestors lives in this season, their very existence depended on the return of warmer days.
We now understand all the how’s and why’s that science gives us to make sense of the longer nights at this time of year, but it doesn’t discount the wonder of it all.
At the Winter Solstice, we can accept this invitation to return to ourselves by turning inward, contemplating in the darkness, and invoking a sense of gratitude for the return of light, and feel a deeper connection to the Earth and our Ancestors of long ago.
Here are 5 simple acts to bring reverence to this holiday:
1. Slow down
This goes against the flow in our modern society where we are surrounded with a busyness buzz around the holidays. Everywhere we turn there are subtle and not-so-subtle marketing campaigns targeting us and telling us what we should be buying; the more, more, more that equates our worth with consumerism.
Opt out of that. It is okay to decline invitations to holiday parties, events, and obligations that aren’t aligned with your peace. It’s okay not to buy gifts for everyone on your list.
It’s okay to rest and simply be. Schedule unbusy days to replenish yourself. Stay in and watch a classic movie with your family in pajamas, take a bath and read a book, disconnect from email or turn off your phone for a few hours- do whatever nourishes YOU.
This time of year is not meant to run ourselves ragged while emptying our emotional, physical, energetic, and financial reserves.
My cat, Mia, embodies the Solstice feeling with a nap under a home-made pentacle made from found mossy sticks and strung with fairy lights
2. Get outside
Be intentional about getting outside in nature. No matter where you live, even in the coldest of frigid climates, you can survive a walk in a park or other natural area. Bundle up, pile on all the warmest things, take a mug with a hot beverage in your gloved hand and get.outside.
Notice the changes in scenery this time of year brings. What has died this season or returned to its roots? What has stayed green and is sleeping? What life is still showing up?
Contemplate this in your life as well- what have you let die or go to rest? What still burns bright for you? Is there anything that is not in tune with where you want to be headed in the coming year? This is an opportunity to release it.
3. Bring nature in
Many people have the tradition of bringing evergreen trees into their homes to decorate and celebrate the holidays. I ask you to take it a step further.
Gather some sticks, moss, leaves, stones, shells, acorns (if the squirrels have left any!), or pine cones and display them around your home to remind you where you come from.
I like to have a clear bowl with natural materials in the center of my dining table as a centerpiece. My sons enjoy collecting findings on our walks and incorporating them into their imaginative play.
3. Create
This looks different for everyone as there are so many expressions of art. The point is to tap into your second chakra and be intuitively led. Do something with your hands!
Hand craft ornaments, draw, write, make a wreath or garland yourself, hand-dip or roll sheets of beeswax candles, paint, sing, dance, or decorate cookies. A favorite activity of mine is making “Solstice Suns” by dehydrating slices of oranges and stringing them in front of windows around my house. The way the light shines through them is beautiful, plus they smell lovely.
Create just for yourself, not trying to impress or live up to anyone else’s standards or to accomplish anything than doing the act itself.
4. Make nourishing foods
Tap into your Ancestral roots and revive family recipes that have been part of your lineage, or discover new ones. Cook with organic, whole foods in season that are available locally.
When we do things our Ancestors did, they recognize it and it deepens our connection to them. Experiment with being led intuitively by the ingredients instead of a recipe.
On Solstice I like to cook with foods that remind me of the Sun- golden beets, red lentils, carrots, pumpkin, turmeric, cinnamon, and ginger.
5. Celebrate light
Last, but not least, we celebrate the return of the Sun with light itself! Light candles, start a fire in your hearth or bonfire outdoors.
Watch the flicker of fire and think about those who lived long ago and depended fully on fire to keep them warm and illuminate their night. Consider the time before the discovery of fire and what those nights might have been like, only the pinpricks of stars and the glorious Moon shining down through a darkened sky.
It might be fun to avoid turning on any electric lights and just be reliant on firelight for the evening (please be fire-wise though!)
This is a jumping-off point to get your started on creating your own traditions that resonate with you. Remember #1 is to let-go of anything that feels more like obligation than joyful. That is a sign that it is not for you, at this time.
Just taking part in acknowledging the role that Winter Solstice has had in all our lives since the beginning of time on Earth is a act of reverence in itself.
I send each of you peace and joy through this season.
Here I am on the eve of a new decade. Farewell, 30s. What great years you’ve been. Truly the best.
I remember people telling me “these are the best days of your life” so often during my high school years, which was always depressing for me to hear then. Oh, how they were wrong!
My 30s, those have been the best years of my life! I remembered who I am, stopped blindly trusting and obeying our society’s systems and started questioning and investigating for myself, sobered up, began my journey toward healing, honed in on my deep connection with Spirit and All, found exercise I truly enjoy, became a Mama and had two amazing births, fell in love with myself for the first time, understood where I have come from and the work I am here to do, strengthened my intuition, moved to my dream home in the woods, started writing again, cultivated relationships with my Ancestors and witnessed the unwell’s healing and reunion with the Well and Bright ones, stepped out of my shell and became part of my community, and discovered what it is to stand in my power.
Am I at the crest? Is this the peak of the hill? Will I begin the descent toward being “over the hill” as they say? Those who value youth and throw out wisdom and experience with age. Trying to deny the graying hair and wrinkles appearing in the reflection. Grasping at the maiden while shunning the crone.
No.
I will not slow my stride. I know there are plenty more vibrant years to come, lessons to learn, memories to make. More peaks in this mountain range of life to encounter. And I will stop to admire every view and enjoy the journey. Every step.
Even when it is hard, because I know now that during the hard times comes the growth and hidden blessings to be discovered later.
Earth Star Healing Arts 