A ceremony for when the day is long and the sun is high ☀️
The Summer Solstice series - #1
This June I am celebrating the days between the summer solstice on June 20 and the beginning of July with a simple, soulful, meditative ritual.
Join me as I turn over an oracle card every other day, share its meaning for this season, and reflect on how that message can be embodied in our everyday lives.
This simple ritual is a tool for celebrating + welcoming the season of fire + light. Meant to help us commit to a few moments of meditation to discover and celebrate the flame within each of us.
Join me in soaking in the light of the sun + discovering how we can radiate fire + passion in our everyday lives. Now that we're in full bloom, just like the earth, it's time to burn brightly. It's our season to shine + glow + radiate.
Hello, you.
Blessed Litha and Happy Solstice!
I believe deeply in slowing down and pausing for just a moment when these sacred, special days come around year after year. And so, after weeks of waiting, the midpoint of summer is here and this afternoon I’m sitting down to share the moment with you on a very sunny Solstice afternoon here in Sweden.
The longest day of the year has arrived and the sun is at its farthest north along the horizon, seemingly standing still, making this the day that is filled with the most daylight of the entire year. Friends in the southern hemisphere experience the exact opposite, as the winter solstice brings them the shortest day and the longest night of the year.
After today, though, there is a shift. Tomorrow, the days shorten, one second, one minute at a time, as the sun begins its slow return to its southernmost point in the depths of winter on the December solstice.
But, before any of us start to feel a twinge of sadness that the waning part of the year is upon us, these days around the solstice (and even all through the summer, I believe) are meant to be soaked in like the warming rays of the sun.
Today the sun’s power is at its height and the lush, green and blue earth is teeming with life. This is the time of the fullness of nature. Everything is alive and wild. And today is a day for celebrating the light and life that has been growing since the winter solstice six months ago. Now, is the time to bask in the beauty of it all. Birds, bees, creatures of the forest, fairies, magic, fields of wildflowers, juicy strawberries, flowing rivers and deep oceans. Me. You. Being alive.
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This year, in order to celebrate the season of light and fire and life I am setting aside time every other day, from now until the beginning of July, to focus on the wisdom that this time of the year offers us.
Using The Literary Witches Oracle and my intuition, it is my intention to spend a few moments letting my own inner light and fire blaze a little brighter. The Literary Witches Oracle is a 70 card deck with cards of female authors, reimagined as powerful, creative, magical women and cards which represent tools of the witch, such as talisman, animals, symbols, etc.
This early solstice morning, I made some coffee, lit a candle, and pulled 7 cards, one for every other day between now and July 2. I laid the cards in a ring on my dining table and turned over the one at the top of the ring for today. The rest of the cards will stay there for the next 14 days and I will turn one over before I write to you every other day.
So, let’s get right to today’s message.
When I turned over today’s card, I could not have imagined anything more perfect - and my soul whispered a message to me immediately.
The white dress is a tool for ceremony.
In many religions and traditions, wearing white symbolizes a new start, purity, and sacredness. In Sweden, the popular attire for Midsummer is actually white - dresses, linen shirts and pants, light and flowy.
But, more than just a symbolic color for clothing, the white dress card was a call to ceremony. And the summer solstice (as with all of the sacred festivals and holidays throughout the year) is a time of the year that is filled with celebrations, and ceremonies, and tradition. So, this morning, the white dress invited me to remember to be sure to intentionally mark this sacred time of the year with rituals, traditions, and ceremony.
Of course, one of the ways that I am creating ceremony this summer solstice is by writing to you every other day. So, it felt like this card was the perfect affirmation that this short digital time together as summer begins is exactly what is supposed to be. A kind of welcome for us to journey together.
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Ceremony and ritual do not need to be complicated. Often I find that keeping things simple is the best way to make things personal and meaningful. There is no right or wrong way to create rituals and ceremonies for yourself or for others. Of course, there is much tradition that can be learned and studied (and I highly recommend that, if you are so inclined or interested to do so), but I deeply believe that for all of life to be seen as the magical and wondrous journey that it is, we are free (and encouraged by the natural cycles and rhythms of life) to create our own everyday rituals, ceremonies, and traditions.
This is how we mark the special, magical, momentous moments in our lives. This is how we bring rhythm, grounding, connection, and deep, inner peace into our lives.
So, this June, celebrate the solstice and the turning of the wheel of the year in whatever way speaks to your soul. Simply light a candle and gaze upon the light and the fire. Stay up and watch the latest sunset of the year. Rise extra early to watch the sunrise. Journal and meditate on your own inner light and growth. Create whatever moment you want with a ceremonial mindset.
Take a long, deep breath right now, my friend. Hold it. Pause. Feel the energy of life in you. And, then, slowly exhale and release everything. Sit for a moment and think about what ceremony means to you - what kinds of ceremonies are a part of your year? Are there any special rituals or traditions that you have surrounding midsummer and the solstice? Is there any new ritual or tradition you would like to introduce into your summer celebrations this year?
Sometime over the weekend (which is bursting with all kinds of life-giving energy from the solstice, midsummer celebrations, and the full strawberry/rose moon), carve out some time to create or practice your own summer ceremony. And, if you want any help or tips or just want to share what you do, leave a comment below or message me in some other way.
In the meantime, bask in all of the daylight and the magic of the bright night. I’ll be in touch on Saturday.
Solstice love. xoxo. liz.
The perfect first card. I’m using a goddess deck and my first card was compassion, perfect for Cancer season ♋️🦀 Solstice blessings Liz! 💛
Sunset + sunrise over here, over ocean. Dawn patrol (surfing at dawn) tomorrow to re-welcome the light. Inspired also to pull 7 cards for 14 days! <3 Thank you for sharing such beauty, as always.