Easy Ways to Celebrate the Winter Solstice
By: Yael Wolfe
Tags: Spirituality, Holidays, Winter, Christmas, Nature

Easy Ways to Celebrate the Winter Solstice

Let’s not allow our busy world to forget this important holy day

Photo by Maria Shanina on Unsplash

I love holidays. I love the idea of carving out certain days of the year and giving them special attention. I love the idea of being intentional, of honoring the cycles of the natural world, of taking time out from the busyness of everyday life and stopping to catch our breath, recalibrate, and spend time with loved ones.

Though I left Christianity at a young age, I grew up in a household that celebrated most Christian holidays, and as such, I still celebrate them as a way to connect with my parents and because despite my separation from the church, the teachings of Jesus have deeply influenced my life.

But as someone who finds the Creator in nature, I also celebrate the holidays of the old world — the eight sabbats, as they are sometimes called, which include the two equinoxes and two solstices. I love the summer solstice, a time of magic and mischief that falls just a couple weeks before my birthday. And the winter solstice is important to me as a day of hope and strength.

The winter solstice brings the light back.

I’m an old soul from the old world. I live in the dark, cold woods, a place I love but also sometimes fear. I believe in the winter demons (let’s call them depression, anxiety, and other such things) and that those demons sometimes grasp at my ankles with their spindly, long-nailed fingers. I believe that this is a season where the ones who have left this world can come and go more easily — sometimes as helpers, sometimes as mischief-makers. I believe this stark time of year is like a magic mirror held up in front of our soul, showing us some of our worst fears, forcing us to face thoughts of our mortality, insisting that we look at and acknowledge the darker forces of this world.

And on the solstice…we ease into the cycle of renewed life. The sun begins to shine again. We dream of our gardens blooming and nights running across the dewy lawn. We remember that we’re going to be okay. Life will keep going.

I think it’s important to acknowledge this holy day, no matter what other holidays you celebrate at this time of year. It’s a way we can honor the natural world and the most primal parts of ourselves (for we belong to the natural world) in the midst of a bustling, stressful season. And the best part is, you don’t have to carve out a whole day or make a big deal out of it. You can just try a few simple acts of reverence and celebration.

Watch the sun rise

It’s easy to get up before the sun at this time of year, when sunrise is a bit later in the morning. Get out of bed in the dark, bundle up, have your coffee outside and watch the beautiful sun come up. He’s gaining strength now and the days will start to lengthen. Say a prayer, a thank you, or give a cheer for this light that keeps this earth alive.

Eat yellow food

Symbolism is everything. Don’t ever let anyone tell you differently. Eat yellow food on the solstice to symbolize your body taking in the sun’s light. Drink turmeric tea. Have a poached or fried egg with a bright yellow yolk. Make a casserole with cheddar cheese. Be very mindful as you eat — thankful for the returning light.

Bring in the evergreens

If you haven’t already gotten a Christmas tree, the solstice is a great day to do that. The practice of having Christmas trees in the house was born from the tradition of bringing evergreens into the home as a symbol of life that could not be threatened by winter’s cold. If you’ve already got your tree up, buy an evergreen wreath or bring in some pretty evergreen branches from outside.

Sit by the fire

At night, sit by your outdoor fire pit and drink cocoa. If you don’t want to be outside, your fireplace will do. Again, be grateful for the light and heat of the fire, which symbolizes our beautiful sun. And if you want to take it one step further, write down the things you want to let go of — the things that you don’t want to carry forth into this time of renewal — and then throw those pieces of paper into the fire and let them burn away. This is also a great time to light the Yule Log.

Don’t use artificial lights

On the night of the solstice, keep all the lights in your house off. In our modern world, we really mess with our natural rhythms with all the artificial light we use. Respect this cycle of darkness and only use candles for the night. No TV, no computers, no phones. Cook by candlelight, eat by candlelight, talk with your family by candlelight, then go to bed early and get some extra rest.