Celebrating Solstice

 Today is the Winter Solstice, which marks the shortest day and longest night of the year.  From this point forward, we move towards spring, but for now, during this week of worldwide religious celebrations, we seek to embrace the Light in the midst of darkness. 

There are festivals and rituals practiced around the globe to mark the Solstice, many of which started in ancient times. Most of them involve some symbolic means of invoking light, such as carrying lanterns and candles or building bonfires.

I close my eyes and imagine people in ancient cultures, facing darkness, cold and possible starvation, calling the sun back to warm them and ease their fears. 

We are all like children: afraid of the dark, of the unknown, of being alone. We live on a beautiful planet that supports us because we orbit around the sun, yet it all seems tenuous, perhaps more so now because science tells us that our planet is in peril.

Like ancient people, there is so much that we don't understand, and it is easy to give in to our fears.  
I guess that's where faith comes in. Today, on this darkest day of the year, I will choose to replace my fear with faith in a loving Creator who has it all under control.  I will not worry about the future, but will keep my eyes focused on the "author and perfecter of my faith" (Hebrews 12:2) as I celebrate his coming into the world.

All That Glitters

 

This is the time of year for lights and glitter.  Even as our days grow shorter. darker and colder, we celebrate by decorating our homes with sparkle and color, going to holiday parties and embracing all that is shiny and bright. But if we were to do some soul searching, are we really embracing the true Light of the world in the midst of all that holiday glitter?

It always amazes me how quickly people take down their holiday lights after Christmas.  I want to keep them up through all the dark days, until the warm, bright days of spring arrive. even though I always relent and finally take my tree down towards the end of January.

Maybe people turn off their holiday lights so soon after Christmas because it sadly has become a holiday of shiny lights, glitz and excessive spending that fizzles out quickly and leaves people feeling dissatisfied and let down once the big day is over. There is a famous expression: "all that glitters is not gold", meaning "the attractive external appearance of something is not a reliable indication of its true nature". The external appearance of all our holiday glam is not a true reflection of the Light of Christ, whose coming into the world we celebrate as "the reason for the season".

So, on this gray December morning, I will turn on my holiday twinkle, light a candle, and choose joy, reminding myself to be still, find the true light of the Spirit in my heart and give thanks for the greatest gift of all.