December 21st is the winter solstice, a day that I have long honored. The word solstice is derived from the Latin sol (sun) and sister (to stand still). “Sun-standing” might be another meaningful name for this moment. At both the winter and summer solstice, the Sun appears to stand still because the seasonal movement of the sun’s daily path pauses at a Northern limit (winter solstice) and Southern limit (summer solstice), before reversing direction.
At winter solstice, the two moments during the year when the path of the Sun in the sky is farthest south in the Northern Hemisphere (December 21 or 22) and farthest north in the Southern Hemisphere (June 20 or 21). When it is the summer solstice at one Pole, it is the winter solstice on the other. At the winter solstice, in the Northern hemisphere, the Sun travels the shortest path through the sky, and that day therefore has the least daylight and the longest night.
I think of solstice as a passage and one that is connected with the season. For those of us in the Northern Hemisphere, December 21st is the passage time to a return of the light and the time of the Sun returning to the Northern Hemisphere.
You might find it interesting to read how different cultures throughout history celebrate this winter solstice. Various holidays and celebrations are associated with or an outcome of the solstice. Cultures of all kinds including Christian, Hinduism, Greeks, South African, paganism and others, all have celebrations and feasts and traditions recognizing the importance of this time of year.
I’m drawn to a nature-based approach to the Winter Solstice. One that includes thoughts and moments and celebrations that focus on rebirth, renewal and the return of the light. This can be a simple time to reflect on the cycles of nature with a meditative walk in the woods, nighttime candles and a fire in the wood stove. They all represent the return of the light for me. And maybe I’ll add a glass of freshly squeezed cold lemon water, an organic Cara Cara orange, a cup of freshly brewed rose hips from my winter harvest or some sips of Pinot Noir from a nearby grape harvest. We shall see.
What’s the best way to recognize and attend to this transition and return of the light for you?
