Midwinter

Anticipation and hope

It is midwinter here in the northern hemisphere and the air is crisp. A few days ago was the Winter Solstice which marks the beginning of our astronomical winter and the longest night. The Druids call it Alban Arthan which is Welsh for “Light of Winter”. If Samhain is all about death, then the Winter Solstice is about rebirth, for this is the shortest day - the sun died but on the solstice it is reborn and very slowly brings warmth and life back to the earth.

Tomorrow, many will celebrate Christmas. Homes are decorated with greenery and lights, gifts are exchanged, families and friends assemble, there’s drinking and feasting to celebrate midwinter and the turn of the year. Our attempts to imbue a bit of brightness into the darkest part of the year have developed over thousands of years. Modern seasonal celebrations are a nod to ancient pagan feasting traditions at the solstice; the gift giving, decorative wreaths, public banquets, misrule, suspension of work and social patterns of Roman Saturnalia; the Saxons Wassailing with mulled ale and mistletoe and the Twelve days of merriment prevalent in medieval culture. It’s incredible how cultural customs prevail and syncretise, our ancestors did us proud.

I always find this time of year and the solstice in particular a time of anticipation and hope. We lean into the darkness knowing that little by little the light is returning. It’s a time to reflect on the past year, to leave our troubles behind and consider what we will take with us into the New Year.