The most used phrase on the subject of our winter solstice is, we celebrate the return to light. Returning light, it feels like the light is still going out. I live in Northern Minnesota and this “return” takes quite a few weeks. The cloud cover around here makes unrelenting time so much more pronounced, is it day or evening? It feels like twilight all the time. You look out a window it could be 9,12, 4, and boom-its dark again. We have a lot more winter to go, and a ton more hours of dark to move through. Day over…nope its only 5pm.

Day drinking, was it day? Did we have a day?

The depression is real. The desire to be a recluse, to hole up and lower the shades, light the candles and keep the lamps down low, high. The pull of unrelenting cold and dark is too ball up and sleep. For some, its drink up and weep, others, bake up and eat. It takes a tough resolve to understand the need for this dark and its way of pulling your dark truths out for everyone to see. The tendency is, to think you can hide in all of this dark, or that we can’t see you now. The problem is, there is so much dark and cold. You will eventually start carrying your dark thoughts with you and mulling them over wherever you are. The shadow you may be trying to hide is getting larger behind you. The dark you are hiding from, is the dark you are living in. You have become that grumbly person in the supermarket line we all avoid.

This is what makes the time of the dark days so important. It is a necessary time for revealing your inner monsters so they lose their impact and go back to their hell. Do you really want to be led by your nose, riding the wave of destruction fueled by drugs and alcohol, self loathing and betrayal. If you do not tame your monsters and leash your demons then by winters end they have you by the neck. After dealing with the relentless sunshine of summer this darkness is a sharp contrast and the head whipping is real. The person you are in the summer is different than the person you are in the winter. Realizing and understanding this offers up great opportunities for growth.

First you need to understand that Demons are necessary for plying you out of your dark places so that Angels can revel themselves. In summer the unrelenting light works to expose weaknesses, teaching us we cannot hide. But it was the dark that set us up to believe we could. And it is in the dark we first try to hide what we fear is unacceptable, pushing unwanted things, say under the rug or into the closet, and in the dark we closed the door to those scary things forgetting we put them there. And then people let their dark thoughts grow and cloud their every minute, over taking the grace that is in front of them, in the form of friends and family. Separating you from what is good. It is no joke, the dark is unnerving but necessary to contrast the light.

When the dark tries to over take you, light a candle and hold it and focus on the flame. Now look around, in that small act you have brought light to a dark space. It only takes a spark to bring light to the darkest of places.

Lighting a candle for yourself is the reminder of choice and free will, that is a decidedly human attribute. And as a human you can act, you do not always have to react. In a greater state of awareness you can be like a candle, shining light on all, and you can be the source that lights someone’s flame. Having learned to be understanding in your own dark days makes your flame more visible to even more people. Living a life of acceptance teaches others to light flames themselves. Selfishness destroys flames. and burns down candles, that’s not the life we want.

It turns out the dark is a safe place to practice being yourself it was never meant to be a safe place to hide your Self. Be the light to others who may have never felt the light.

It only takes the smallest of kindness to bring joy to a broken heart. It takes the smallest amount of love to keep a desperate person alive. Walk through this time of dark shining by the light of your own heart. See struggling humans and smile, if nothing else, smile. The light of your smile may just be enough.

Happy Solstice. Spread the light! Be the Light! God is great!