(Photo by Diego Hernandez)Today is December 21st. If you live in the Northern Hemisphere of planet earth like I do, may I say: Happy Winter Solstice and Welcome to the shortest day of the year.
Winter Solstice is an astronomical event caused by the earth’s axial tilt being the farthest away from the sun. It is the day marked by the shortest amount of sunlight and the longest period of darkness.
Think: brrrr.
If you live really far north think: freezing everything I got.
Historically, cultures have celebrated the Winter Solstice as a time of rebirth. Ancient cultures came together during for festivals, feasts, dancing, singing, and cuddling with loved ones around the warm hearth fires. Many modern cultures still follow the old traditions.
As for me, this dark, cold, short day brings me hope. Every moment after December 21st (the occasional storm excluded) will be brighter, sunnier, warmer. From here on out the darkness will be behind us and up ahead are better days. After the doom and gloom year we’ve been living through, I’m thinking we all could use a more sunlight in our lives.
So here’s what I propose:
Like the people of the past, let’s get together on this darkest day. I challenge you to go out and do one loving thing today. Just one. It doesn’t really have to be world-changing, or earth’s-axial tilting. No, just give a gift from your heart, do a good deed, help someone…I don’t need to tell you because you’ll know the loving thing when you do it.
I’ll post about my good deed after I do it. It would be really great if you could post about yours. What was it? How’d it make you feel? Your comments might inspire others to do one loving thing and it will snowball into a giant lovingthingerama.
Maybe, just maybe, this will be the best darkest day ever.
Kimberley Troutte
Author Page at Samhain Publishing
kimberleytroutte.com
7 comments:
I already did it! A friend of mine has been having a really crummy couple of weeks and sent out an email saying she was boycotting Christmas. I got a padded envelope, stuffed it with a DVD, some junk food and some bubblegum machine toys and mailed it to her this morning. I'm hoping it will give her a laugh.
Oh Charlotte, that's wonderful!
Yo urock! I'm sure your friend will laugh.
I haven't done mine yet. But am makin' plans.
My hubby is doing a good deed for me. First, he cleaned up the kitchen and now he is taking the kids out for an hour so I can do my work.
This of course, makes for one happy mommy and a whole bunch of sunshine in our house.
I haven't left my house yet (my kids are sick and have been sleeping in late today) but I will post whatever good deed I come up with a little later.
Kimberley
Kids are up. I think I'll start the day by heading over to my favorite coffee place and giving the baristas humungo tips.
We'll see what other good cheer I can spread along the way.
The two baristas teared up and so did eye. Super cool!
It was urprising how much fun it was thinking about and doing good deeds today. Amazing too, how easy it is to let a car go before me, realy spend time with the kids, use good manners, look out for others.
I hope you had an amazingly bright day. And may all your tomorrows be even sunnier.
That's funny, I spelled "I" like the eye. Shows you how much I teared up! I realy wish I knew how to edit these things, but since I don't, we're stuck with the typos.
Happy Holidays!
Kimberley
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