Dear, Darling and Much-loved Children of the Earth,...
Happy Winter Solstice! It's time to celebrate the birth of the Sun!
Just when it seemed nights would continue to lengthen, The Wheel of the Year turns and we find ourselves facing... more Light!
We may not notice it at first--we may assume that the nights are just going to get longer as we head into the "dead of winter". But the opposite is true. The day after Solstice, our day is minutes longer and keeps lengthening till we get to Mid-Summer.
If you walk outside into Nature, you'll see that the vegetation isn't dead at all, it's resting. In a few weeks, little nubs will appear on the end of branches. Even now there are animals, birds, root systems, continuing their cycles of Life.
In the Pagan world, we take our lessons on how to live through the teachings of Mother Nature.
The message She sends to us at this time of year is simply this: It is in the darkest hour that the Light returns.
For as long as there have been people, we've celebrated Solstice as a time to come together, make merry, share what we have, and delight in our love for each other. It's no different now.
When the outer world gets scary, it's time to take some Sacred time, some time away from the ordinary onslaught of whatever is barraging us, get quiet & connect with whatever you call God.
If you go outside and look up into the night sky, the awesome truth of our existence reveals itself:
This world is much larger and more mysterious than we can ever comprehend. And yet, somehow, we are held.
Especially in these dark times, when there is so much fear on the land and in our hearts,
the Truth our ancestors celebrated is still true. It is in the darkest time that the Light returns.
This Solstice, we could take some quiet time and let ourselves imagine
how the Light could return in our own, individual lives.
Because it always does.
Still loving the light in you--
Namaste,
Mary