Solstice Celebration

A solstice celebration

It's been a heckuva year. I've done a lot of praying for things to improve, and I've done a lot of staying home, wearing a mask, washing my hands, and NOT getting too close to my favorite people. (2020 has been really hard for extroverts, ya'll. We're huggers.) 

This year, the winter solstice fell on a Monday - Dec. 21. My group of Drunco friends decided that we'd celebrate with an all-outside fire pit gathering. (It was Shawn's month to host, but I floated the solstice idea, and pretty soon - much like last year's whisky tasting - we were co-hosting! Whoop! Shawn is definitely the "she" to my "nanigans.") 

We hauled tons of lanterns with candles out into Shawn's backyard, offered hot mulled wine with steaming bowls of chili and cornbread muffins, and topped it off with sugar cookies shaped like moons and stars (courtesy of Caron). Shawn's husband got a good fire going for us, and I tossed in some Mystical Fire packets for magic color. (I discovered these earlier in the season, and I love them. They are little packets of chemicals. You toss them into the fire, and suddenly, your flames are blue, purple, green - all manner of wonderful colors!)

I'd also brought along some sage sticks (because we were so going to smudge the HELL out of whatever bad juju 2020 brought with it), and Susan wrote us a bespoke poem about a better and brighter 2021 that we read aloud! (Yes, we are word nerds. No, I absolutely do not apologize for it. See below for her epic poem.) 

Additionally, it just so happened that on the night of this year's solstice, the "great conjunction" of Jupiter and Saturn was occurring overhead. In other words, the planets were literally aligning. We figured there was no better time to banish the bad energy of 2020 and welcome a more hopeful, positive 2021. (So in other words, if 2021 is another dumpster fire, it ain't our fault! At this point, I've done literally everything I can think of!) 

It was a wonderful evening - the glow of the fire, the delicious food and wine, our makeshift ritual, but most of all - each other. Cheers to the new year!

Mystical Fire to summon better days ahead! 

On the shortest day and longest night,

We gather here to make everything right.

2020 brought grief and fear,

And we say good riddance to a very bad year.

May this ritual banish sadness and pain

And welcome a time when kindness reigns.

The sparkle of stars and glow of the moon

Let the heavens witness our hearts attune.

With love and friends we hold so dear,

May 2021 be the best of years.