The Solstice Season: Rest and Reflection

Stonehenge at Sunset

Before the Incas, before the Egyptians, even before Stonehenge, the people of

Newgrange Ireland studied the sun's movements in the heavens. They built an enormous stone and earthen mound with a central chamber that is light once a year by the Solstice Sun. It announces the end of the darkest day of the year.

Our darkest days are our longest. The harder things are, the slower time passes. Depression and cloudy days alike just go on and on and on. We endure such dark times with a little more ease if we have a sense that they will end. Like a child in the back seat, we ask softly, "Are we there yet?"

So perhaps that is why our ancestors created places like Newgrange or the pyramids in the Andes and in Egypt. As the Solstice approaches the days are shorter and shorter. Most people could feel it and asked themselves, "Are we there yet? Have we reached the peak of winter? Will the days ever get longer? Will we ever be warm again?" These great ancient structures assure us: Yes, the sun will come close again and the days will once again be warm.

A Fool awaits Solstice Day

The Sun Chamber at Newgrange allows light in for just those few days, the 5 days, when human hearts and minds only know that the days are growing neither longer nor shorter. The sun, the earth, all time is standing still. Every year, the 5 days of Winter Solstice fall on December 19th, 20th, 21st, 22nd, and 23rd. These are days of waiting. We Fools honor these days as a time of reflection and we invite you to reflect with us.

On each day, we will be honoring reflection and have blogs here so you can join us in that reflection.

• The first day, December 19th, we honor our ancestors. Those who have come before us.

• The second day, December 20th, we celebrate the new life that came to us in the last year and the families, chosen and given, that sustain us.

• The third day, December 21st, is the Solstice itself, the Great Pause. This is a day when we set aside whatever time we can to settle in and be fully (and Foolishly) present.

• The fourth day, December 22nd, is a day to celebrate the talents and gifts that surround us--the talents of others and those of our own.

• The fifth day, December 23rd, is a day to think about who we want to be in this world and in the year to come.

There is much more that we will say about each day, so mark your calendar and come to the Fools Blog page for daily reflections from December 19th to 23rd.

And know that on December 24th, the days will begin to get longer and we will have clarity that we are ready for the New Year.