In Irish, the Winter Solstice is called Grianstad an Gheimhridh, the Sun Stop of Winter. It marks the moment in the solar year when the sun ceases its long descent and, after this still point, begins its slow return to the heavens. The spiral of time turns.
I watched the rising sun form the Bridge of Souls inside the dark of Newgrange, a phenomenon echoed at other Neolithic monuments across the northern hemisphere. Our ancient relatives understood this day as one of change a natural pause between what has been, what is, and what is yet to come. They knew the value of stopping, of aligning themselves with the rhythms of the land and sky, of gathering inward before moving forward.
This was a time to embrace the magic of both the departing darkness and the returning light. Each has its own power. Light reveals and warms, but darkness is where beginnings take root where the seeds of the coming year are formed, unseen and full of promise.
So take a moment today.
Settle yourself.
Breathe.
Pause between the fading and the rising
and let your light be a guide for others.
Honor what you are ready to release, and quietly welcome what is beginning to stir.
May the returning light find you rested, grounded, and open , and may the darkness that remains be gentle, creative, and wise.