Since yesterday was the winter solstice, we just had our shortest day and our longest night of the year. I know many feel like 2020 has been the longest, darkest year they have ever faced.
But things just shifted. Did you feel it? Today will be longer than yesterday. Darkness is reversing. There will be more light in every day and this will continue to increase. We may not notice it yet, but it's unquestionably happening.
We can apply the same hope to our circumstances after an especially tumultuous year. If thoughts and situations are dark, please allow this beautiful poem shared with me by a friend, remind you that morning always follows night. Always.
Blessing for the Longest Night
by Jan Richardson
All throughout these months
as the shadows
have lengthened,
this blessing has been
gathering itself,
making ready,
preparing for
this night.
It has practiced
walking in the dark,
traveling with
its eyes closed,
feeling its way
by memory
by touch
by the pull of the moon
even as it wanes.
So believe me
when I tell you
this blessing will
reach you
even if you
have not light enough
to read it;
it will find you
even though you cannot
see it coming.
You will know
the moment of its
arriving
by your release
of the breath
you have held
so long;
a loosening
of the clenching
in your hands,
of the clutch
around your heart;
a thinning
of the darkness
that had drawn itself
around you.
This blessing
does not mean
to take the night away
but it knows
its hidden roads,
knows the resting spots
along the path,
knows what it means
to travel
in the company
of a friend.
So when
this blessing comes,
take its hand.
Get up.
Set out on the road
you cannot see.
This is the night
when you can trust
that any direction
you go,
you will be walking
toward the dawn.
© Jan Richardson. janrichardson.com
If you celebrate Christmas, Merry Christmas! May God bless you and open your eyes to all the gifts that remain, despite the challenges of 2020. For those who have experienced great loss this year, I’m so sorry. I know it may not feel like a very Merry Christmas. Even so, I challenge you to look for and find the "Merry Christmas moments" that are worth treasuring. Gifts are found when eyes are open. Blessings of peace to all...
