Winter Solstice

"Today is the winter solstice. The longest night of the year. From now on, the nights will get shorter and the days longer.
The need to hibernate becomes overwhelming. I like candles,incense and music.This is the time of year for pampering, for sitting in front of the fire, reading good books, listening to great music, eating winter foods. Indulging the senses.

This is also the hardest time of the year. This is the time of soul searching and the recognition that things and people have endings. It is the time of year for hibernation and self analysis. I like the dark of the year because it allows me to seek the dark side of me and learn about myself.

Living in New Brunswick, a land of seasons, where winter visits for months at a time, as the winter deepens an overwhelming need arises in me for green living things. By March I will just about be out of my mind for signs of life. I will avidly watch the trees for the first buds of spring, the air for the arrival of spring birds, I will watch the snow melt, waiting for the tips of the grass to be seen. I will want to throw open the windows and air out the house and welcome spring and life back in.

But now, on the longest night of the year I will hunker down, feed my fire and revel in the good things of winter, the times of celebrations and aloneness; the light of the day and the darkness of night; the glitter of snow and the bareness of the trees; the coldness of the outdoors and the warmth of my home. I will be glad for the roof over me, the food on my table and the fire in my stove. I will thank the goddess for the good things and remember that the sun will come back, the days will lengthen and the flowers will grow. And after a winter of introspection, like the earth, I will awaken in the spring to new life and all its possiblities. Will you share that with me?", I whisper.

Are you listening?