Hitting Send

Why has Summer always been my favourite Season? Could it be the warmer days, spent outdoors? The promise of friends gathering, barbecues, sweet, icy refreshments, lazy poolside fun and galavanting on the beach? Yes, yes, I believe so! And, the fact that my birthday lies smack dab in the middle of the fun certainly helps the cause as well. *giggle* So, my recent excitement at Solstice’s arrival should surprise none. But, it’s also pretty Amazing to me just how many of the ancients celebrated the special time as well.

Many great stones, megaliths, tunnels and monuments have been constructed to honour this specific astronomical moment in time. The celebration of light at its brightest has held great significance for our ancients, for as the Sun warms Mother Earth with His strength and power, Earth is nurtured, and thus able to bring forth Her gifts to us. Whether you call it Solstice (latin for Sun standing still), Litha, Alben Heruin, St. John’s Day, or something else, the joyous solar festival of many names falls upon 21 June and will be the longest day of the year here in the Northern Hemisphere, bringing the beginning of Summer with it.

Among the many monuments, the Solstice is commemorated in stone at Egypt’s Giza plateau. Can you imagine the ingenuity required to enable the Summer Solstice Sun to set precisely between the two Great Pyramids? The impressive Nazca Lines, a mysterious series of shallow trench designs dug in the Peruvian desert between 500 B.C. and A.D. 500, include features aligned with both the Summer and Winter Solstice sunsets. In the Toltec Mounds Archaeological State Park near Little Rock, Arkansas, the Solstice Sun sets directly behind a ceremonial mound constructed some thousand years ago by the North American Indians. Thousands of people will gather this year to celebrate the day at Stonehenge, where Sacred stones have been aligned with the Solstice for some 5,000 years.

For me, Midsummer, as its also known, doesn’t just mark the occasion when the Sun proudly reaches its peak strength, allowing Earth Her lush, Beautiful fertility; it is also a celebration of service, sharing and giving our due to the planet. We shall each do our part to prepare for the harvest season, for it is not just an agricultural reward we reap; we, too, shall be harvested. This involves sharing with our community, giving back to those who have helped us, through random acts of kindness, and assisting our fellow soul siblings however we can. It is a sharing of the harvest, and ourselves, in Gratitude for what we were Blessed to have been given.

Sunshine brings strength and inspiration, and Solstice is an excellent time to appreciate the day with some thoughtful solitude about what the next phase of the year will bring. Considered by ancient civilizations to be like our modern-day New Year’s Eve, it was viewed as a time of rebirth and renewal. I shall spend time outdoors, appreciating the new energy, and setting intentions for how I can best serve and bring the energy back around come harvest time. Should this not resonate with you, I hope that you shall at least be inspired to find a way to celebrate the long honoured time in a way which feels best for you. What do you feel inspired to do, Dear Reader?