Do you celebrate the Winter Solstice? Many of us mark this time of year with traditions of this ancient festival - albeit inadvertently - but the date often passes us by with no fanfare and little notice.

This is partially because the calendar date is just days away from Christmas; a deliberate calculation. By using many of the symbols and rituals of established festivals like Saturnalia, Sol Invictus, and Yule, early Christians succeeded in absorbing popular Winter Solstice celebrations.

This year, December 21 is the longest night and the shortest day in the Northern Hemisphere. The Earth is at its most severe tilt away from the sun this Sunday at 10:03 am EST.

Darkness

The long darkness is an opportunity to sit vigil, to reflect on the past year and anticipate the new, and to rest for the increased activity that comes with longer days. We may choose the calm of solitude, or opt for the comfort of company.

And Light

After the longest night, days will lengthen until the Summer Solstice, when the process reverses. The ‘rebirth’ of the Sun is symbolized by bringing light into the darkness: fires, candles, or twinkle lights.

Awesome Nature

Even if the weather outside is frightful, winter’s unique beauty is an opportunity to humble ourselves in awe. Whether we breathe in the bracing air, catch a snowflake on our tongue, or simply run from window to window to see the outside world blanketed in white, we shift our focus to the bigger picture and calm our nervous systems. Even in snow-free areas we discern a variation in the light, the temperature, and the energy that coaxes us to embrace the natural world.

Community and Creativity

Gathering with others is a deep instinct which fulfills our need to belong. We celebrate one another with common experiences like feasting and catching up on one another’s lives. Creating together - music, special foods, rituals and traditions new and old - anchors us in a feeling of stability and warmth.

The Winter Solstice is a time for all good hearts to unite, to acknowledge our commonality, and to prepare our souls for whatever is to come.

The Shortest Day by Susan Cooper

So the shortest day came, and the year died,

And everywhere down the centuries of the snow-white world

Came people singing, dancing,

To drive the dark away.

They lighted candles in the winter trees;

They hung their homes with evergreen;

They burned beseeching fires all night long

To keep the year alive,

And when the new year’s sunshine blazed awake

They shouted, reveling.

Through all the frosty ages you can hear them

Echoing behind us—Listen!!

All the long echoes sing the same delight,

This shortest day,

As promise wakens in the sleeping land:

They carol, feast, give thanks,

And dearly love their friends,

And hope for peace.

And so do we, here, now,

This year and every year.

Welcome Yule!

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