Solstice Eve

Have you ever stirred water in a glass and then tried to change direction? The current pushes back at you at first. I tried this exercise once in a swimming pool with a group of people. We all walked around in a circle in the pool until the water began to flow in the direction we were moving, and then we changed direction and moved against the current. It was harder than I expected.

Even though I know it’s gravitational pull that is swinging us back closer to the sun, I find myself thinking about how much mythic/energetic momentum the sun has built up over the last six months, and how at 12:30 AM EST tomorrow morning it’s going to turn and move against that current.

Now the sun is big. One million earth-sized objects could fit inside the sun. Think of how strongly the moon affects our tides, of how the pull of something smaller than our planet that is 238,857 miles from us can have such a profound effect on us. If you’ve been to the ocean then you know the strength of the tide. So try to magnify that effect and think of the sun changing tides. It’s a ponderous thing to wonder. While tiny on a universal scale, our sun is still very, very big.

Turning to push against the current is a scary thing. It’s hard work. Eventually you reach the balance point, the equinox, and then all starts to flow along the momentum you’ve built, but it all starts with the courage, grit and determination to change directions.

In my own life, I’m about to turn and push against the current. While expanding on the visible work I’m doing here at Patheos, I’m also going to be launching a new project. It’s going to be difficult, and more than a little scary. It will leave my life without a safety net. It’s going to take a lot of my time and resources. Turning to make that first push away from what was relatively comfortable into something difficult and somewhat risky isn’t easy. I have my moments where I’m frankly a bit terrified.

I see a lot of hope in my project though and believe it’s worth the stress. A lot of potential. Like the returning light, I can see how it can wax bright, grow strong and help other projects thrive. It will be difficult at first, just like blogging was difficult at first, but it will gain momentum and get easier. And maybe that’s why I’ve chosen such a quiet Yule this year: all new things begin quietly, in the darkness. And maybe that’s why this is known as the reflective season, because you have to think carefully and clearly before you begin anything new. Maybe that’s a new relationship, maybe that’s a new job, maybe that’s moving to a new town or getting a new pet. Maybe that’s beginning a new project or maybe that’s beginning a new solar year.

As the earth revolves around the sun, you might say it has a “revolutionary power,” and every six months it upsets the status quo. Nothing remains static. All is changing. All is evolving. What a marvelous thing!

Many of us believe that the waxing moon is a good time to begin new things if you want to see them grow. So it makes sense, given all the New Year’s lore, that when the solar year turns from waning to waxing it’s a good time to begin new things. To make resolutions.

May your Solstice be filled with blessings, may the new solar year bring you all you desire, and may the light inspire, sustain and guide us all!

In other news, Dr. Bird has decided to respond regarding Christianity’s “triumph” over Paganism.

Also, I’m still fundraising for a new laptop. My current one is dying and I need to get a replacement. I don’t like fundraising, I feel tacky for doing it, but I don’t have a lot of options. The plus side is that the laptop will help me launch my new project, which although it is still under wraps, I can promise is very exciting and will benefit the Pagan community. Also I’m working on a special gift for people who donate. So if you feel so inclined, you can send a donation via PayPal or Dwolla to starling.foster@gmail.com with a note that it’s for the laptop fundraiser. Thanks so much to the people who have donated so far, and to all my readers for putting up with this fundraiser!