Begin by finding a comfortable place to rest,
This could be seated or laying down.
Wherever you are,
Let your body arrive in this space.
Allow the surface beneath you to hold you.
Feel the weight of your bones settling.
Feel your breath deepen just a little.
Let your shoulders soften,
Let the tension in your jaw dissolve,
Let your whole being slow down.
With every exhale,
Imagine the last of your tension melting into the earth.
With every inhale,
Imagine yourself being filled with a quiet,
Steady warmth.
Take a few more breaths here before we begin,
Allowing your body to remember that it is safe to rest.
Now imagine the world around you growing dim.
Not a frightening darkness,
But the tender,
Velvety dark of a winter night,
The kind of dark that invites rest,
Reflection,
Stillness.
See yourself standing at the edge of a quiet landscape.
Snow blankets the ground,
The air is crisp,
The world holds its breath.
Allow yourself to step gently into this scene.
Feel the soft crunch of snow beneath your feet.
Feel the silence of winter settling all around you like a mantle.
You are entering the heart of solstice,
The longest night,
The deepest dark before the light returns.
As you move through this winter landscape,
You begin to notice a warm glow up ahead.
A small golden light,
Your own inner hearth,
Your flame.
Move slowly towards this gentle glow,
There is no rushing here.
Light grows as you move towards it,
Waiting for you to arrive with patience and love.
When you reach it,
Stretch out your hands and place them over this warm glow.
Feel it radiating through your palms,
Traveling into your body.
This glow,
This light,
This flame,
It represents your inner light made visible.
The part of your energy that never goes out,
Even in the darkest seasons,
Even when it's been dimmed to a mere ember.
The part of you that knows how to rise and rekindle again and again.
Let yourself receive its warmth,
Let yourself feel the glow building from within.
As you feel the warmth of this light,
Bring to mind what you are ready to release from the past season.
This could be a thought,
A weight,
A pattern,
A fear,
A story.
Anything that no longer needs to travel with you as we return into the light.
Imagine placing this thing that you are releasing gently into the snow beside you.
The earth receives it with tenderness,
No judgment,
No rejection.
Feel your body lighten as you set it down.
Feel your breath grow deeper.
Feel space open inside of you.
And with what you are releasing,
Cradled by the ground,
Embraced by the snow,
No longer yours to carry,
Bring to mind what you are ready to welcome in.
Into that space you have created as the light returns.
Is it a new quality,
A new desire,
A way of being and moving in the world?
A tender beginning.
As you hold this thing in mind,
Imagine your inner flame growing brighter with each breath.
As the light within you grows,
Feel your body remembering.
Feel the rekindling,
The first stirrings of rebirth within you.
As you feel this energy growing,
Place one hand on your heart and one on your belly.
Whisper,
Thank you.
Thank you to your body for carrying you through another cycle.
Thank you to the darkness of winter for its quiet lessons.
Thank you to the light for always returning in time.
Thank you to the earth for holding you through every season.
Let this gratitude ripple outwards from you like a soft golden wave.
Let it reach every part of your being that has been tired or tender.
Or healing.
Let it reach the women who rest with you on this darkest night,
Even from afar.
Let it reach the earth beneath you.
As you stand in this wintry landscape,
Calling in the new,
Releasing the old,
And rippling gratitude outwards for the experience of both.
Imagine the winter landscape slowly brightening.
The first light of dawn begins to stretch across the horizon.
Pinks,
The return of the light,
The promise of renewal.
Feel that light touching your skin.
Feel it warming your heart.
Feel it awakening something new and hopeful inside of you.
Begin to become aware of your breath once more.
Let your breath slowly shift you from this beautiful landscape with the rising sun.
Gently back into your physical body,
Allowing your awareness to return to the sensation of your body,
Supporting your breath.
Ported by whatever surface you are resting on.
Ever so slowly and gently,
Invite some small movements back to your hands,
Your feet,
Your torso.
When you feel ready to do so,
Softly open your eyes,
Returning to the room.
I hope you are able to carry this glow within you,
This gratitude,
This quiet sense of rebirth into the days ahead.
Many blessings to you on this winter solstice.
