In the northern hemisphere, the longest, darkest night of the year is upon us. Traditionally, the Winter Solstice, December 21, was considered the birthday of the sun, that magnificent point in time when the sun begins its return to the Earth. In the past, people gathered around bonfires, lit candles, sang songs, and danced together to welcome the return of the light and the promise of new life. Homes were decorated with evergreen boughs and communal meals were prepared.
Although we may not be able to gather with friends and family this year, we can still celebrate the birth of the sun and the promise of a new year by joining our hearts together. For some, it is a time to mourn what we have lost, to surrender to the pain and sorrow. For others, it is a time to share a path through the darkness, to help balance the unprecedented sorrows and grief of the year we prepare to leave behind, and to embrace the joy and wonder of a new beginning.
This year when so many people are suffering, isolated and alone, and the Earth herself seems in crisis, it is important to honor and celebrate the great shifts of our Earthly cycles. Find moments of joy and wonder in the rising of the new sun, the twinkling of stars, the songs of the birds, the brilliance and sparkle of precipitation from the heavens. Take time to feel the returning warmth of the sun and the love from above.
For the first time in over 800 years, Jupiter and Saturn will be joined on the Solstice. This conjunction is exceptionally rare and marks a time when the world resets itself and new patterns emerge. Since this grand conjunction is happening on the Solstice, the annual birth of the sun, it signals both the return of the light and a time of Great Awakening. Once we turn that light on in our hearts and souls and let it reflect in who we are and what we do in the world, the possibilities of change are infinite. Light your fires, sing your songs, dance freely, and celebrate your loved ones in your heart.
As we come toward the close of this tumultuous year, we invite you to set your intentions, let go, release all that no longer serves the Earth, and dream of the future you want.
A new dawn is on its way!
© 2020 Dreama Brower
Photo courtesy of Mohamed Nohassi, Unsplash
“Of all the seasons, winter is the most conducive to the great art of dormancy. This art requires an appreciation of semi-consciousness: the beautiful and necessary prelude to sleep – a special pleasure in itself that is all too often neglected, under-valued or looked down upon.” — Michael Leunig
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