It’s Always Darkest Before the Dawn
By: Barbara Fagan-Smith
Tags: Count Your Blessings, Dreams, Winter Solstice

This phrase is especially applicable today, in the Northern Hemisphere*, on the eve of winter solstice, with vaccines arriving while deaths from Covid-19 peak. It is dark; and the sun will surely rise.



The darkness of winter is truly a time to go inside, literally and spiritually. It’s a time of reflection. Ideally, it’s a time to slow down, if you allow it.

This is a time to contemplate what is important. It’s a time to think about the past year and begin to envision the next year. If we accept this invitation to slow down and reflect, it can be a moment of renewal and even the rebirth of our dreams.



The metaphor of Covid-19 peaking right now is stark. This is a moment of life and death. The choices we make during these dark weeks and months can mean the difference between survival or sickness and even death for ourselves and those we love.



The value of life is never more apparent than in the face of death. Each day we breathe is precious. As Mary Oliver asks, “…what is it you plan to do with your one wild and precious life?”

A New York Times article today, How We Survive Winter, points out, “The great irony of winter is that the moment darkness is greatest is also the moment light is about to return.” As well, when it is the darkest, we can best see the light of the stars.



In the article, Brother Guy Consolmagno, director of the Vatican Observatory, is quoted as saying, “…it is only when you have good darkness that you can see the faint lights, whether it is faint stars, or the little points of light, the thousand points of light that bring us hope even in the darkness.”



Brother Guy also points out that artificial light has interrupted humanity’s experience of true darkness, making us more uncomfortable, and robbing us of the night sky.



Speaking of the night sky, this year’s solstice coincides with another special astronomical event: On Monday evening, Jupiter and Saturn will be in a rare planetary alignment, appearing closer together in the evening sky than they have been in nearly 800 years. To see this Great Conjunction of Jupiter and Saturn look Southwest in the sky, left of where the sun sets, about 45 minutes after sunset last night.

To celebrate the winter solstice tomorrow evening, after the sun sets, bundle up and go outside to gaze at the majestic planets next to each other. Then, thank your lucky stars that you and your loved ones are alive and well.

Ignite Your Life 2021

For those of you participating in the Ignite Your Life 2021 series, we held our second of four Zoom calls on Friday. You can watch a recording of the first live session and a recording of last week’s session. Here are links to the materials we are using: Reflecting on 2020 Worksheet, and A Weekly Guide for Soulful Living journal. If you’d like to join in for the last two sessions on January 8 (annual goals) and 15 (vision board), you can register here.



For those of you interested in starting a vision board over the New Year, check out this video on Living ROI about how to create a physical vision board. You can also create a digital vision board. Here’s an instruction video on using Canva to create a digital vision board. Have fun with it and invite your family to join in!



By the way, my next newsletter will be on January 10. I’m taking a couple weeks off to slow down, look up and see the light.



Wishing you a reflective time to slow down, look up and see the light,

Barbara Fagan-Smith

CEO, ROI Communication

Chief Catalyst, Living ROI

*I want to acknowledge my friends in the Southern Hemisphere — Down Under, Southern Africa, South America and the many islands surrounding those regions — who will be enjoying the longest day of the year tomorrow during their summer solstice!