winter solstice celebrations

In our area, the Winter Solstice occurs Thursday, December 21st at 11:28AM EST. This marks the longest night (and shortest day) of the year and the official start of winter.

At Yoga Home, our core values drive our mission and empower our decision making process. We embody and model these values in our business practices, programming and team development. So, we thought they may be able to teach us a thing or two about how to celebrate this Winter Solstice.

1. Connection: The Solstice is a wonderful time to connect to nature as we look forward to the rebirth of the sun. It is also a good time to connect with animals in nature as well. Grains and seeds, and the feeding of creatures have been associated with this time for hundred of years in Europe. To continue this tradition, gather some sunflower seeds in a large basket or bowl. Go outside next to the home or to a place frequented by wild birds and other wild creatures!

2. Acceptance: Accepting the darkness is a great way to honor the new solar year with light. Do a Solstice Eve ritual in which you meditate in darkness and then welcome the birth of the sun by lighting candles. If you have a indoor fireplace or an outdoor fire circle, burn an oak log as a Yule log and save a bit to start next year’s fire!

3. Community: What better way to spend a solstice than in community. Join fellow #yogahomies with Kristin Page and Rachael Hunter for Solstice Yin/Vin. In this 2 hour practice we will observe the balance between these two interconnected forces of yin and yang and explore these opposite yet complementary qualities using the breath, movement and stillness.

4. Growth: This is a great time, symbolically to welcome growth as the days from here on will grow longer and longer. To clean out the old and allow room for the growth of the new. Create a ritual for yourself! Maybe create a living mandala of flowers, or prepare an alter of things you’d like to manifest and light a candle, or grab yourself some Palo Santo from the studio and cleanse your space.

5. Love: Write yourself a love letter! This is a great time for you to plant “seeds” that will lay dormant during the winter and when spring comes will hopefully blossom into something beautiful. Give a trusted loved one your letter to mail to you at a random date in spring and trust that you’ll receive it when you need it most.

Happy Winter Solstice everyone! We hope to see you soon!