Happy New Beginnings!
Harnessing the power of the cosmos this solstice
Hello, Lovelies!
This will be short and sweet. I’m sure you have cookies to bake and Christmas movies to watch!
Change is in the air. Can you feel it?
Monday is the solstice. In the northern hemisphere, this marks the longest night and the return of the sun. But there’s another cool thing happening in the sky.
On the same day as the solstice, Jupiter and Saturn come together to form The Great Conjunction. People (like my husband) have also been calling this The Christmas Star.
The Great Conjunction is especially significant this year because the planets are moving into a new astrological element.
Instead of diving too deep into a subject that I’m not a master of, I’m going to share this quote from one of my favorite astrologers:
The Great Conjunction occurring on the solstice, a moment historically equated with new beginnings, is a far more powerful initiation than the turning of the clock to January 1st, 2021… What we begin now has incredible staying power.
Ohhhh YES!
So, that’s why I’m wishing you all a Happy New Beginning right now! Sure, the proper new year is more than a week away, but time was invented by man and manipulated to make train schedules easier. The sun and stars don’t need that shit, so neither do I!
For the past several years, I’ve been honoring the winter solstice, also known as Yule, with ceremonies. My rituals vary from year to year, but they always involve watching the sunset and writing intentions for the new year.
If you can, I highly encourage you to do the same this year. And be sure to look for Jupiter and Saturn 30-60 mins after the sun goes below the horizon. They’ll be in about the same location in the sky as the sun.
Because we’re supposed to get rain in Maine (rhyme!) on Monday, Jason and I drove out to a scenic overlook last night to watch the sunset and witness the planets nearing their conjunction. We packed candy canes and Diet Dr. Peppers and picked up Thai takeout on the way home for a classic Steinheimer-Northen date night.
We pulled up to the lookout and saw a whole row of cars parked there. At first, I thought they must’ve had the same idea — to watch the sunset before the weather got bad — because I live in an imaginary world where everyone would do that.
But then, we heard the sirens.
“Is it Santa?” I asked.
Fuck yes, it was Santa.
We accidentally showed up at the Christmas light parade! All the local firetrucks, dump trucks, and business vehicles were decked out in lights and garlands, honking their horns, waving, and shouting “Merry Christmas!”
I legit shed a tear. Not only because it was heartwarming, but also because it was the most social thing I’d done all month.
Personally, I’ve been embracing the darker, colder days. The past couple of months have been to me what I’m sure the beginning of the COVID pandemic was to many others.
After moving to a new state, buying my first house, and setting up and managing a homestead for most of the year, I think I summed up how I felt about winter by turning to my husband and saying, “watching all of Netflix and gaining 15 pounds sounds great right now.”
But seriously, friends, I hope you’re taking care of yourselves through these short days and long nights. Some dreadful things have happened this year, and I know there’s still a lot of bad shit going down every day, but we all made it this far.
Here’s to better days ahead! (I’m raising my goblet of homemade fizzy water and lime to you).
I leave you with this quote from one of my all-time sheroes:
If you want to share your own solstice ritual or intentions, please reply to this email.
As always, thanks for reading, and I love you!
XoL