The light returns on our Winter Solstice ...

Today marks our shortest day & longest night - the Winter Solstice marks the turning point when our light will slowly return from our deep midwinter. 

I like to celebrate this change & this was previous years ...

2011 

2012

2013 

2014

2017

2018

2020

2022

2023 

It is the time when greenery is welcomed in the home - holly, ivy, mistletoe, logs all signify the connection to nature in the deepest winter nights. 

It is a time to hang garlands on the door & bring greenery & light in to the home, a time for log fires, candles, comfort & joy. 

In times long gone, winter was a time to reflect & be thankful after a busy summer & harvest. The short days signalled to animals to conserve their energy by hibernating & it felt as if time is suspended. A bad harvest for our agrarian ancestors would have been disastrous so they gave thanks for any blessings that came their way, acknowledging their dependency on nature & its fickle ways. 

Our busy lives have little time to rest, reset, restore so this is time to do just that in the lead up to the busy festive season with all the expectations & emotions that brings. Embrace the sleeping, glistening landscape, the pure snows, the quieter times, the warmth of steaming bowls of soup or indulgent hot chocolate wrapped in gloved hands, with steaming breaths in the cold air.  Take in the smells of woods or forests that bring a natural stillness & calming when things start to overwhelm you, when memories become raw ... 

             

Some Anglo Saxon & Norse cultures celebrate Modraniht, Mother's night, the long line of Mothers who came before us & their influence on us. They are the wise & benevolent women ancestors whose wisdom guide us. Stories of grandmothers, great-grandmothers & other women in the family are shared & passed on so their spirit lives on. It is both a solemn & joyous time honoring them. 

My winter simmer pot is ready to give the home a wonderful natural scent of cloves, cinnamon (for success, wealth & abundance), star anise (for healing, luck & clarity),  juniper berries,  rosemary (for protection), sage, lemon grass, lemon & orange (happiness & prosperity & symbolises the return of the sun)

May you welcome in the light again with candles & positive thoughts; in the dark of winter, we make  the light

Dee🕯️🌲🕯️🎄🕯️

A Winter Solstice simmer pot

 Hi all, hope you are all managing to find some calm amidst the rush, slow down, take a moment to enjoy the rhythm of nature & the gentle passing of the year ... 

We have reached our shortest day today - the Winter Solstice falls on the 21st December this year & we will have reached the tipping point of Winter.  It is a time I like to connect with nature & to just ground myself amidst the busyness of the festive season. 

This is how I have marked the solstice in previous years at home:  

2011 

2012 

2013 

2014 

2017 

it in 2018 

I am always reminded of the traditional things associated with midwinter - the Carol - In the Bleak midwinter .... 

Charles Dicken's story of A Christmas Carol with Ebenezer Scrooge etc

Of the Holly & the Ivy carol - traditional greenery brought in to the home at this time, a pagan tradition that is very apt as most people hang a fresh wreath on their front door & drape holly over picture frames etc. 

Crowds will once again gather at Stonehenge to witness the Winter Solstice as is traditional amongst the pagans here. It is a time honoured tradition ... 

This time I am minded to do a simmer pot to freshen the house with festive scents for Solstice - a sort of cleaning of the air. We do not use any artificial air fresheners so natural fragrances (pomanders, potpourri etc) 

I gathered sliced oranges, cloves, cinnamon sticks, sprigs of fresh rosemary & sage,  a few star anise, a whole nutmeg and a splash of vanilla & added them to a pot, covered the contents with water, brought it to a gentle simmer, then let the scent waft through the house. This is a traditional method. 

What spices or items would you add that remind you of mid Winter?  Tomorrow I will pick fresh hedgerow Holly & Ivy & bring it in to the house, probably humming a familiar carol as I do that ... 

Thank you for stopping by at this busy time, we have passed the darkest of our winter,  the light returns as every day it will become lighter again. 

Dee ~💕~

Welcome Winter Solstice

Today marks the Winter Solstice & this Christmas carol comes to mind:

In the bleak midwinter, frosty wind made moan
Earth stood hard as iron, water like a stone
Snow had fallen, snow on snow, snow on snow
In the bleak midwinter, long ago

The carol is based on a poem by Christina Rossetti & it was published in January 1872 under the title of 'A Christmas Carol.’

This must not be confused with A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens - written 175 years ago & an absolutely Christmas must with its strong message ... 

Darkness comes early now before 4pm in the afternoon, it is already pitch dark.  However, the darkness just means that the lovely Christmas lights glow even more brightly ... 

The Holly & The Ivy is another carol which is reminiscent of this time of the year: 

The Holly & the Ivy
When they are both full grown
Of all the trees that are in the wood
The holly bears the crown
O the rising of the sun
And the running of the deer
The playing of the merry organ
Sweet singing of the choir

I love to have greenery & candles in the home in Winter - it helps to mark the changing seasons as our Druid ancestors did before the Winter Solstice became part of our traditions.

So today marks our shortest day & it is a welcome day because the light will return now, a little each day.

This is how we marked the solstice in previous years at home:

2011 happy-winter-solstice-day

2012 mid-winter-solstice-time

2013 happy-winter-solstice-day

2014 midwinter-solstice-time

2017 happy-winter-solstice-light-returns

I will probably do this again - a Fire Releasing Ceremony  - write down what you want to ‘release’ on a paper then gather around a fire (a chimnea for us) and throw your paper on one at a time to release that part. The papers contents are not shared, they are just a private thought written down to be released.

As the rush of the festive season gathers momentum,  I like this thought:

Wise sayings often fall on barren ground, but a kind word is never thrown away.

However you observe the Solstice, the seasons retain their rhythm that punctuates our year. The darkness of Winter will soon give way to the soft light of Spring with its colour & light, but for now, I will bring light & greenness in to my home to honour Winter. May you feel the warmth of the low winter light, enjoy the silence that Winter brings & just breath as you enjoy the ebb & flow of the seasons.

Have a lovely Solstice day, thank you for your company

Dee ~💕~

Midwinter solstice time ...

Hello all

I am sure that your planning is as busy as mine. I have been away visiting family & attending to some family jobs.

However, I managed to spend the time productively by getting some presents,  window shopping & enjoying some meals out too.

We arrived back home this afternoon & enjoyed a lovely Winter solstice sunset of pink & blue colour across the sky - a lovely reminder of the beauty of Winter.

Many cultures have specific traditions associated with Mid Winter.

Holly & mistletoe have always been associated with pagan rituals during winter & they have crept into our own lives. I love to have a bowl of pretty pine cones, boughs of holly & ivy & bowls of fragrant bulbs in my home …

Look at previous Winter solstice posts - 2011, 2012, 2013 -

The sun has set beautifully on our shortest day - the days will gradually lengthen & brighten up - that is certainly something to look forward to.





























Hope you have observed the changing season - even if it was just pausing to look at the sunrise or sunset ….

Thanks for stopping by,  especially as the festive planning takes over our time
Dee ~♥~

Happy Winter Solstice day ....

The Winter solstice always brings hope that we are half way through winter & our long, dark days will start to lighten again.

I gazed upon the moon early this morning over our tree & hedge, a very calming scene.

We had a family breakfast today - toasted chocolate panetone with fruit & yoghurt & freshly brewed filter coffee.

The late sunrises & early sunsets will slowly swap over & the low arc of the sun across our skies will change too.

The word solstice comes from  the Latin words 'sol' for 'sun' & 'sisto' for 'stop' - the sun 'stands still' , it stops moving southwards & begins to move northwards again.

The Solstice reminds me of the ebb & flow of life - the cycle of life that we are part of.

Today I celebrate the return of the sun to our northern Hemisphere with greenery to welcome visitors & link to nature. Our evergreen holly trees remain all year, our door wreath is a gift once again & symbolises gratitude & a circle of life ...

We will light lanterns  at home tonight to bring in light; light & greenery honour nature & these rituals give meaning to life & connect us all.

My chimnea is stacked with wood from my own garden for winter fires & I love this idea I came across ...

Fire releasing day

Everyone writes a note on what wish they would like to release & then everyone gathers around a fire & throws their paper on to burn 'release' their wish, while participating in quiet reflection & gratitude.

However you choose to observe the solstice - consciously or otherwise - know that the rhythm of life continues & you are part of it.

Thanks for stopping by, light a lantern or candle tonight to be one with nature ...
Dee ~♥~