Solstice-ing

I have always wanted to mark the winter solstice somehow, but every year it whizzes by me in the frenzy of the last week before Christmas and I miss it. This year I decided to celebrate it properly. And it seemed only right to have some sort of year end celebration in this house that has been our home for 4 and a half years, before we celebrate Christmas and new year in our VT house.

I had to pick up the car (which was getting snow tires fitted) and go to the supermarket, and then it was a race to get home in time to see the sun go down.

We (make that I) decided to bring in some of the Saint Lucy's day traditions. Ella had read about these in a book and was very taken with the idea of playing St. Lucy. And while I wasn't up to attaching 4 candles to her tinsel crown, when it got fully dark (we didn't turn any lights on as the light faded) I lit Ella's candle and she walked into the room carrying it like an angel and lit Kit and my candles (Matt was at work and the big boys had a wrestling tournament). The three of us then took our candles and went around lighting all the candles I'd put out earlier in the day.

I love the idea of embracing the dark, acknowledging it, and then with a single flame, bringing light back into our lives. I had cleaned the house (well the two rooms we usually "live" in) and sprinkled glitter all over the dining table.

We had a bowl filled with water and essential oils and glitter and candles.

And a fire set and ready to be lit with a single touch of a candle flame. We were trying for the traditional 12 hour burning yule log to get us through the night, but didn't quite manage it.

We drank hot spiced apple cider, and once the fire was roaring, we wrote out our wishes for the coming year and each burned our piece of paper in the fire.

The only electric lights we had were the Christmas tree lights because they added to the beautiful twinkly sparkly quality of the candle light. We did Ella's homework by candle light (and lap top light as there were some things we had to look up). And then we strung pop corn and cranberries to make garlands to hang outside for the animals. They are high up on the tree at the moment as Honey likes pop corn- something we discovered as Honey was munching the popcorn off the end of the garland that Ella was stringing.

It was a lovely evening. A lovely celebration, and something that had more meaning to me than any new year celebration I've ever been to. Ella and Kit are both keen to repeat the festivities next year. And I agree. It was nice to slow down, to be at peace and be reflective at this time of year. It felt so right.