Winter Solstice
Welcome winter solstice!
The Longest Night from The Earth Speaks Oracle
If the wheel of the year is like a moon cycle, the winter solstice is the new moon of the year. If the wheel of the year is like a breath cycle, the winter solstice is the depth of the exhale.
The winter solstice is the shortest day and longest night of the year. Within the quiet darkness of this time, nature encourages us to rest, restore, and focus our energies inward.
We all begin in the dark, before we are born. We need the dark, in order to sleep, to dream, and to grow. Everything is born from darkness.
This time of year can be nourishing and supportive if we make space to align with its energy. Winter invites us to see the beauty that’s under the surface, that’s not so obvious. If we observe nature in the winter, we see that the earth is resilient and alive, even in the harshness of the cold weather. This can be a powerful reminder of our own strength and resilience.
Joy and sorrow, light and darkness live together side by side always, but this is especially pronounced in the depths of winter. The winter holidays so often bring connection and cheer, along with an equal measure of grief and loss. Remember that as we meet the darkest night, we also welcome back the light.
This winter solstice is an invitation to cultivate practices of rest, and encounter the darkness. To engage in introspection and self-inquiry. To embrace hygge, the practice of coziness. And to allow yourself a bit of hibernation. As poet Mary Oliver says, “let the soft animal of your body love what it loves.”
Affirmation: May I claim my rest. May I appreciate the gifts the darkness brings. May I remember that even in the darkest days, the sunshine will grow again.
