Winter Solstice Celebration

2008-12-08T22:32:03-06:00

Join us as we celebrate the Winter Solstice. Sign up now!

Winter solstice represents the everlasting promise and hope of the return of light. It is about faith in the nights, faith in the cycles of our lives. This is a season of rebirth.

Hanukkah, Christmas, and Kwanzaa are all promises that life will go on. They all reflect a moment of hope amidst a time of darkness. Some believe they are all deeply connected with the Winter Solstice.

The celebration of Hanukkah is celebrated for eight days, December 4-11. It represents rebuilding and celebrates with the Feast of Lights.

The Winter Solstice begins with the longest night of the year, December 21^st. The return of the sun (light) is about “new beginnings”.

The Scandinavian tradition of Yule is the recognition of the return of the sun – held December 21 through January. It is celebrated with decorations of evergreen, the lighting of fires and candles, with the burning of the Yule Log, and the feasting and celebration, welcoming the return of the light.

The celebration of the birth of Jesus, the Light of the World, is celebrated on December 25^th. Santa and Jesus are known as gift-givers and represent ‘faith’.

Kwanzaa, Decembers 25 – January 1^st, is celebrated by many North Americans of West African decent in recognition of their heritage. The candles of a seven-branched candelabrium represent seven principles: unity, self-determination, collective work and responsibility, cooperative economics, purpose, creativity and faith. Each of the seven candles in the Kinara symbolizes these principles and are lighted progressively throughout the seven day festival.

All of these religions/celebrations come at the end of the year, at about the time of the Winter Solstice. All feature light as symbolic of hope, of wisdom, of growth, of warmth and community strength.

Life expresses itself in cycles – everlasting in one form but impermanent in another. Winter Solstice is a crucial part of this natural cycle.

Life’s journey is one of beginnings, endings, and the transitions in between. Major disruptions, such as death, divorce, job loss, illness can leave us feeling lost.

Winter Solstice is this:

It is a time of death of those things which we can no longer hold on to.

It is a time of letting go of those things which do not serve us.

It is a time of letting go of that which is unreal.

It is a time of celebration of the return of light.

It is a time of touching the ancient truth.

It is a time of touching deeper understanding.

It is a time for honoring our ancestors and the path they have walked.

It is a time of renewal and hope.

In winter we are to turn within, take the time to quiet our lives and minds, rest and renew. Winter is a time of slowing down, of curling up with a good book, of enjoying a good fire. It is a time when the light is brief and appreciated. Rest, revitalize, renew and emerge in Spring with energy, joy, compassion, peace, pleasure, wisdom, gratefulness and all of those things you desire for yourself and others.

Sunday, December 21^st, 6:05 a.m. Winter Solstice Celebration - Sign up now!

Join us at this time of the returning light to honor the silence, the darkness and the mystery of life. We will rejoice in this time of love and the eternal renewal of all things.

The promise of the Winter Solstice is that even from the deepest darkness, new light is born.

Whatever your religion, culture or beliefs, we will celebrate the promise of new beginnings.

We will celebrate the arrival of winter and our turning toward the light during this season of peace, love and joy.

We will celebrate the return of light. Bring bells, drums, rattles to join in the songs and holiday joy.

We will share meditation and ritual.

We will look within to find our suffering to heal. We will seek the truth waiting to be revealed.

We will prepare for the New Year. In order for a new path to begin, the old must end and Spring will come again. We will consider the following:

· As the light returns what issues are blocking the expansion of my light?

· What habits do I need to change to transform into a more loving and powerful divine human being?

· What fears can I release over the next year?

· What life lessons have I learned over the past year? And what do I need to sdo so that I do not repeat the mistakes of the past?

· How can I best bring out the light to myself, to my family, to others and to the earth?

· What do I need to release that is blocking my growth?

· What commitment do I need to make that will heal past wounds, empower the present, and bring achievement of my dreams for the future?

Let’s get ready to emerge as ourselves again! Let’s remember to be joyful, be simple, be playful, be willing to see in the world what you wish the world to see. Let’s share the love we wish the world to share; offer the peaceful resolution we wish the world to hold; plant the seeds of compassion and love for others so that they might reap, that they might sow.

This celebration is a prelude to our new class starting at the end of the twelve-tide, January 5^th. Deliberate Attention is a virtual coaching group that will guide us on our new path into 2009. This celebration/ritual will help prepare us to awaken to the promise of the emerging energy, joy, wisdom, compassion and the realization of our dreams.

You do not have to be signed up for the “Deliberate Attention” Coaching group in order to join us for this celebration. Everyone is welcome! Sign up now!