Breathe, rest and snuggle the dark

For me, Winter Solstice is a time for small gatherings, a warm fire and a pause. A time to take a deep breath and be in the dark. Letting overwhelmed systems rest.

Our society ofter equates darkness with evil. Scary things are in the dark. There is a non-stop push to be light, to be good. This is a mix of racism and religious conversion and other nonsense.

There is nothing in the dark that isn’t there in the light. The absence of one or the other only makes things harder to see, understand and change.

During this time of year as beings of nature, nature is calling us to rest, to pause and take a moment to reset our systems, to remember we will feel the warmth of the sun on our skin again.

Our capitalist/ consumerist society doesn’t want that. It wants us constantly producing, forcing growth, keeping our eyes dutifully trained on the carrot dangling in front of us until it leads us right into our graves.

We can say no to this. We can shift things. We can rest for one day. Be cozy in the dark. Give ourselves time to dream. Even if it’s for five minutes it makes a difference.

Journal Prompts:

What restful thing can you do to day?

Where can you allow moments to slow down and breathe?

What needs to rest and hibernate before it can come to fruition?