Mother nature + the heavens have really outdone themselves today! Not only is it the summer solstice (eeek!!!) (or winter solstice for you southern hemisphere friends), but we also have a bright, big full moon just ready to light up the night sky! Like, for real. Both of them on the same day. My little wild soul is freaking out with hippie love + joy.
That said, there is power in this day.
These two events occurring on the same day do not happen very often at all, so it’s something to stop + think about for just a minute, I believe… could there be some symbolic, theological, spiritual, inspiring message for us right now?
Well, I can’t really help who I am, you know, so as I seek to live a mindful life, reading the signs that are so readily available + present, I find that I just have slow down + tune in to this natural amazingness happening today. And, when I think about all of this light pouring in right now, from the sun + the moon, I am certain that the presence of this double dose of light just might mean something.
So, let’s slow down + take note. Hang with me as I ponder it all…
The situation right now, as I see it.
If you are like me, then life feels like its been spinning quickly, that it’s not quite out of control, but that a lot has been happening. Kinda chaotic, busy and filled with upheaval + tons of change – which has been amazing and challenging all at the same time.
Though it’s been somewhat uncomfortable and unsettling at times, it’s also been a bit exciting. Overall, though, it’s been exhausting, leaving me feeling spent and in desperate need of rest.
Again, I haven’t felt out of control or freaked out, just like I’ve been whitewater rafting. I know what I’m doing, and I feel safe + grounded, and at the same time swept away, moving quickly, and filled with nervous + excited energy. All at the same time.
But, I believe that it all has been exactly as it should be.
Are you with me? Have you experienced the same in any way?
Personally, my work has been insane over the past two months. I’ve eluded to it in a few posts over the past few weeks, and I didn’t really realize how much I was desperately waiting for the end of the year to arrive until it finally got here. Work was extremely wonderful this semester, and I fall in love more and more with what I do, but it got heavier and more intense as the end of the year came. My co-worker mentor went out on disability, leaving me in charge of her 60 students + my own 60 students. Many of them, especially mine, ended up the school year in extremely tough places, dealing with very heavy things in their lives. And to just let them go for the summer, doing all that I could to prepare them for a few months away, was quite tough. In a nutshell, I was just busy with a lot of stuff. Social work stuff. Counselor stuff. Administrative stuff. All of that said… my work is so amazing. Exactly what I want to be doing.
In addition to all of my own stuff at work, there are a lot of changes going on for all of us… four teachers will be on maternity leave in the fall (maternity leave is a whole year here) and we are losing our principal (who has been on paternity leave this past semester) and another teacher, both who have accepted jobs elsewhere. And, five teachers plus a principal might not seem like a lot, but we are only about 16 to begin with. We’re also in the midst of renovations and spent this past week moving ALL of our offices to difference spaces. So, we’ve literally been in the midst of chaos and upheaval and changes lately.
Globally, violence and hate and exclusion is ripping all of us apart. When we need to be building bridges, listening, accepting, and loving, we are, instead, talking about walls, killing others, excluding people for who they love or what they believe in. It’s fucking sick.
It doesn’t just feel like chaos, our globe is in chaos. Daily it feels as if it is getting worse. And the temptation to give up, check out and/or freak out is intense.
Yet, out of the chaos + energy + upheaval, something new is being planted. All of the craziness just may be giving us a chance to let go, to release, to clear to the way for a whole new beginning, personally + globally. Perhaps it has all been part of the process of preparing to move forward, to live on a higher plane, perhaps even with a deeper + higher consciousness. And, if I, if we, open ourselves to it, then we are being given an opportunity to live a more mindful, spiritual, meaningful life. One that is personally inspiring + empowering, and one that is globally connected, united, and peace-oriented.
What if all of the upheaval leads us to lives of deep authenticity + meaning + justice? What if this is all part of the process? I mean, challenges are the stuff that force us to grow. And you know… it is always darkest just before the dawn.
So, where we find ourselves is at a place of deliberate choice.
What will we do now? How will we react, respond, return? Will we seek balance and open-heartedness, will we trust in the possibilities instead of giving up because of the chaos? Will we freak out from the unknown or trust that it will all unfold? Will we take each others’ hand or will we turn and run? Will we build walls or create bridges? Will we include or exclude?
And right now, today, we have some amazing cosmic energy just waiting to help us know what we need to do… so I think we should take just a few moments and soak it all up.
Now, whether you believe in or think at all about what happens in the cycle of nature and up in the skies, or not, we cannot deny the scientific fact that today is the Solstice. For us in the Northern hemisphere, the sun and the moon are both poised to bathe us in light. The Summer solstice marks the longest day of the year, the day with the most daylight. Up north we are basking in the warmth of the sun as we peak with our maximum daylight this week; and in the south, you are marking the shortest amount of light today, but as the solstice arrives, you shift into the season of light returning.
And a full moon occurring on the same day as the summer solstice simply means that we are granted even more bright, white, beautiful light. It’s basically bat shit crazy amazingness.
So, basically, we receive a magical double dose of cosmic light over the next 24 hours.
And, boy, don’t we need all the light we can get right now?
For me, the symbolism of this powerful coming together of the solstice and the full moon, speaks volumes. I see it as nothing but the Divine’s way of reminding us, through nature, through the heavens above, that hope exists. That light and love win. At a time when darkness, chaos and upheaval threaten to leave us paralyzed with fear and hopelessness, we are gifted with more light than we have experienced in months.
And, for me, that means that there is only one choice to make. We simply must open up and move forward. There is no reason to not choose to love and to hope.
To me, these next 24 hours are a signal, a symbol, and a call to surrender. To surrender to the light, and to all of the hope, love, and peace that is always around us + within us. To let go of the past, to release all that we do not need anymore, to leave behind the old, and surrender to the silent shift that is taking place.
The light is literally here to guide us right now.
Now, surrendering is not easy; but, today, of all days, perhaps we might just want to stop for a few moments + sit with it all. Pondering the power of the light. The light that the sun + the moon bring us, and the light that already resides within our spirits and our souls. Perhaps we want to slow down and try to feel the shift, consciously choosing to mark this day and this moment.
You know, Solstice actually means suns stand still. It is literally a balancing point. A turning point. A sacred, amazing moment that lasts for just this day. And it is the perfect time to pause + reflect.
For me, personally, it really does feel like it is turning point. A shift. The energy is positive + filled with life. Especially with the coming of summer. It’s time for free-spiritedness, relaxation, pause, sabbath, excitement, adventure, anticipation. A time to feel alive, releasing all of the hard work, chaos, confusion, and upheaval from the dark, winter months in order to soak up the present moment in its entirely. It’s a time to feel free, and to embrace the possibilities that lie before us. It’s time to lay on our backs and drift off, to dream of whatever we want, to envision our future + the life that we want to create. It’s time to imagine and listen and believe.
My friends, surrender to this moment. It’s time to bask in all of that light and let it lead us forward. Together.
A simple ritual for celebrating this solstice/full moon day:
Gather the items you need: pillows, blankets, candles (one for the middle and one for each person), matches/lighter, snacks (fruit + veggies, especially strawberries), pens, paper, bubbles to drink, cups/mugs
// Invite a few friends or family members to join you. Or totally spend this time alone.
// Head outside in the early evening, before sunset, and create a circular space with blankets and pillows scattered around. If it’s just you, then no circle is really needed… unless you like the symbolism of a circle.
// Create a space in the middle for candles or a bonfire (if you’re so lucky!)
// Gather, sit, laugh, talk. When the time feels right, light your candles.
// As the sun sets and the moon rises—a most magical time of the day where one is seemingly between worlds—hold hands and stand in a circle, take three deep breaths in and out.
// Close your eyes and meditate in silence for a few minutes.
// Take turns going around the circle sharing whatever comes to your heart. Whatever comes is fine. Accept and share anything you feel. Trust your intuition. All is good.
// The first person to speak will light their candle and as they finish speaking, light the next person’s candle as a sign of solidarity and peace. Now the person with newly lit candle has a chance to speak, so forth and so on. Blow out the candles in unison when everyone has spoken.
// Hopefully the moon has risen by now, and you can see it. Just gaze and be present. Talk, wonder, be silent, howl, dance. Use the time as you wish, as it feels right.
// Write down anything you wish to release and set an intention. Open your heart to the possibilities of the second half of this year… from now until the winter solstice. Trusting that it will unfold, but feeling the energy of possibility.
// Toast with something bubbly.
Beautiful Solstice and Full Moon blessings to you all, fellow wild ones.
xoxo. liz
Wow, Liz. ‘Opening up and moving forward’ is an absolutely perfect way to approach life and one that I strive (and consistently fall short in trying) to do. You fucking rock.