Solstice (a day late)

The longest day of the year has passed. The Holly King again walks the earth, while the Oak King bides his time in the underworld. This is a time of declination. The days grow shorter, imperceptible amounts each day, as we begin our trek towards Yule. We celebrate a time of abundance, when things are at the height of growth and progression, a height we can only appreciate by thinking back to the depths of winter, and also thinking forward to the same.

Oddly, despite the fact that it is 90 degrees (F) outside, I've been thinking of winter. I suppose it is like how in the depths of winter, I think of summer. I'm not looking forward to winter by any means (for winters here in NEMO are cold and windy and not fun), but I look forward to what it means. That the earth has completed another cycle of the sun. That the wheel has completed another rotation. Another year has gone by. That life gains its meaning from the eventuality of death, and death gains its meaning from life. Life is meaningful to me. In 100 years, I doubt anyone will know my name. But my life gains meaning in the lessons I've learned and the values I've passed/will pass on to my children. I can take all that with me, for I believe in the continuity of the soul, of harboring many lifetimes of lessons. (Which, of course, we forget the moment we're reborn. Quite unfair!) Our lives mimic the seasons. We are born in the depths of winter, by spring we are beginning to blossom with our physical, emotional, and mental developments, in summer we are young and fertile and growing, in fall we enjoy the bounty of our summer in the form of children and life accomplishments, and in winter, just as we were born, we die.

But, for now, it is summer and the Earth is glorious in her youth. Happy Solstice (one day late ^_^)