Hey, you guys. It's Solstice. December 21st. In purely scientific terms, the shortest day and the longest night of the year. But my family celebrate it for something more. We celebrate Solstice as a Pagan holiday, though we are not Pagan. You don't need to be to celebrate it. We celebrate the fact that another year has passed, that another Solstice has come around. And more importantly, we celebrate the fact that from here on out, the days are getting longer. The Pagans used to celebrate by lighting a huge bonfire, and/or watching the sun rise through monuments like stonehenge. Many people migrate there still today for this very reason. You see, before we knew much about the earth rotating around the sun, every Solstice, we would get very worried. We would become terrified that the sun had disappeared, that the world had grown dark, and that we would never see sunlight again. So we set up huge bonfires for light, warmth; comfort. And we danced and feasted and in the morning, gave thanks that the sun was once again back. Often, we would hang candles from trees, where the image of stringing lights on your christmas trees originated. You see, Christmas originated from Solstice.
You don't need to be Pagan to celebrate Solstice (as I said before, I'm certainly not). Just tonight, find a place in yourself to give thanks that the metaphorical sun will rise again, look back on your year, and be happy for the world around you. Light a candle to symbolize that flicker of sunlight those people craved, to symbolize hope, warmth, love. What my family does is light candles and hold hands and talk about what we give thanks for. Then we give presents. You don't need to do it that way, though.
Flower celebrates is by lighting candles and incense and playing drums. Make up your own way, it only needs to embody the feeling. I love you, and I give thanks for our minds continually whirring, and for our feet continually stepping forwards.
Happy Solstice.
1 comment:
Happy Solstice Lola! <3 u!
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