For those of us living in the northern hemisphere, winter is upon us. Today is the winter solstice, the shortest day of the year. The further north you live, the longer the hours of dark.
Winter Solstice marks deepest of the dark nights, and a return of the emerging light. The northern half of the earth begins to tilt back towards the sun, and the days will slowly grow longer.
It still feels like the nights are too much for many of us. The cold seeps into our bones and we hunker down around both real and metaphorical fires to warm ourselves. Our souls tend to crave the warmth, and the light.
I once read an article that talked about the importance of winter gatherings. It wasn’t so long ago that winter was extremely dangerous for all humans. So, when the wind grew bitter and the nights grew long, we would gather together and share the best of our stored food, hear our elders’ stories and play with our littles. We would try to bury old grudges and arguments. We would dance and we would sing.
We knew that not everyone was going to make it through the winter, so we celebrated each other while we could. We created the rituals that follow us even to our modern day.
If you crave your own ritual, here are a few ideas to get your winter mojo moving.
Light a candle.
If you don’t have a fireplace, something as simple as a candle can warm your heart. Gaze into the flame, watch it move, and let your eyes soften. Feel the warmth of even this little flame, remember that even in the darkest nights, the light will come again.
Sip Mulled Wine.
A warm cuppa to help heat the hands and heart. There are many mulled wine recipes to be found on Pinterest. The basics are a cheap red wine, honey, sliced oranges, cloves, cinnamon and nutmeg. You can play with the ratios, but please don’t boil it!
Don’t want to use wine? Give cider a try.
Listen to Festive Music. Dance!
This playlist will get you started. Dancing is a great way to get your body moving when it’s hard to be outside for very long, and laughter will fill your home in no time.
Forgive someone.
Ugh. I know. But this year has been one for the BOOKS. If you have a grudge that you can let go of, now is the time. Using compassion meditation can be a good place to start. And if you can’t forgive them just yet, that’s okay too.
When things are hard, we need to celebrate the good. Remember, and be actively grateful for the things that make our hearts happy. The people who, even when they are challenging, are making our lives better.
It’s time to hunker down around our homefires.
As you wind down the year, honor your innate human wisdom that life is short, and enjoy it while you are here. Let the darkest nights guide you back to your light.
