Happy Solstice! Today is a day to recognize the stillness of the earth, when in the northern hemisphere, we have the day with the most darkness and the shortest amount of light. Recall the story of Persephone, who for Sicilians, even today, is an important divine spirit. Persephone, the Queen of the Underworld, is sitting high on her throne next to her husband Hades or Pluto, the God of the Underworld.
She holds in her hand seeds—yes, those of the pomegranate according to her story—but seeds in the sense of ideas, feelings, hopes, and dreams. They are under the earth, gestating: your ideas, your hopes, your dreams for the next year. She is holding them close to her heart, showing you too, to do the same. Because now, during this stillness, is the time to allow them to gestate, to consider and conceptualize a plan… and in just a few days, when the light starts to show itself as returning, you too will start to sprout your roots. You too will start to reach for the light.
This moment is significant. Take your time. Be in the shadows, in the underworld. Because to push through the earth, the dirt, and reach for the sun, you need to turn in now. Rest. Regenerate. Meditate. Allow yourself to be led by Persephone. And like the pomegranate, the wheat, the melons, and the grapes, you too, will flourish in just a few months.
Persephone and her mother Demeter, ancient deities whose stories continue to inform life in Sicily today, show us that the light will come! Spring will come! But first, be with winter.
Just be.
