As the sun fades and the usual ritual would be turn on the lights, I strike a match, one by one, until my home is lit with candles. It's the simplest reminder of the Winter Solstice & it's celebration of coming out of the darkening days and walking, slowly towards the light of spring.
Yule is the true Pagan name for today, where the fear of not making it through the winter, would begin to wane. The night sky would be the guide light and when this day arrived, they would celebrate the sun. The could see the "newborn" sun and they would celebrate!
For me, today is a time to reflect on the personal winter that we all go through and be grateful the "light" that we see at the end of our personal tunnel. So I keep the artificial light out and I take the time to be quite and reflect on what the past months have taught me and given to me.
My candles burn ... it's Winter Solstice!
I can't say it's been an easy one. Mostly, it's been my own wandering through my darkness and feeling lost and confused about who I am and who I should be. I've been quite, almost hibernating, just like it should be in winter.
Now I'm starting to see the light and this post is perfectly aligned. It's my first post, with my new blog categories, signalling a true spring is on it's way!
So by the light of slithery moon & the flickering candles, I'm taking a quiet Sunday to appreciate what it means to get through both a physical and a spiritual winter.
I wish you a Merry Solstice ...
Jo, this is such a juxtaposition for me. Here I am at the height of summer. The sun barely sets. It is bright sunshine in my room at 520am and does not set until 10:30pm and it is significantly light out for at least two hours after sunset and before dawn. I burn candles but their light barely makes a difference.
That really is so crazy! It's pitch black so early here and my take on freezing! I would love to know how your adventures are going?