Winter Solstice is a moment in the seasonal arc when the seed of light enters the womb of winter's darkness. Every year, on or around December 21st when the Sun shifts from Sagittarius to Capricorn, we experience the longest night of the year. This occurs when either of earth's poles reaches its maximum tilt away from the Sun. It happens twice yearly, once in each hemisphere (northern & southern). For that hemisphere, the Winter Solstice is the day with the shortest period of daylight and longest night of the year, and when the Sun is at its lowest daily maximum elevation in the sky. 

Many European cultures observed the moon cycle leading up to the Winter Solstice as a time of preparation, anticipation, and drawing near to loved ones. It involved the twin themes of celebration and faith: celebration over the harvested fruits of the land and slaughtered animals, and faith that their stores would be replenished in the coming season. Renewal was only possible with the rebirth of the sun, so this season of anticipation culminated with the great celebration of the Winter Solstice. It is for this reason that the time leading up to Winter Solstice is considered a very powerful and holy time of the year. 

Cultures from around the world have been celebrating the return of the light since time immorial - Kwanzaa (African-American), Soyal (Hopi), Jul (Scandinavian), Cassave/Dreaming (Taino), Chanukah (Jewish), Christmas (Christian), Festival of Hummingbirds (Quecha), Shabeh Yalda (Ancient Middle East), Goddess festivals: Freya (Norse), Lucia (Italy, Sweden), Sarasvati (India). 

We will gather to honor this seasonal threshold by exploring the theme:  Belonging: Be the Light of your Longing. 

WHAT YOU CAN EXPECT:

- Welcome & Arriving

- Invocation

- Thematic Message

- Sharing Silence

- Journaling

- Elemental Divination

- Closing

NOTES

- Video optional.

- Shares optional.

- Chat-open for non-vocal shares.