December Solstice (Winter Solstice) is on Saturday, December 21, 2019 at 11:19 pm in Toronto. In terms of daylight, this day is 6 hours, 31 minutes shorter than on the longest day in June, creating the longest night of the year (https://www.timeanddate.com). Here is a great explanation from Space.com: On Dec. 21, the sun stops moving southward, pauses, and then starts moving northward. This pause is called the “solstice,” from the Latin words “sol” for “sun” and “sisto” for “stop.”
The winter solstice brings long hours of darkness and is believed to hold a potent energy for restoration, regeneration and renewal. On this long, dark night the Feminine, Moon, Goddess energy is prevalent and having just experienced a powerful Gemini full moon, its influence will be dominant indeed. The ancients observed the longest night as the end to darkness and the return of the Sun. They imagined the pregnant moon giving birth to the sun, the most revered celestial body. The birth of the sun-the birth of the Son. Interesting that the most revered and highest beings are believed to be born at this time. Symbolically, light is coming to the world.
Spiritually and energetically, the winter solstice is a time of quiet energy offering opportunities for deep reflection. Take some time to embrace the darkness on December 21 and to think deeply about the authentic you; how your experiences have affected you; and what you hope for your future. Light a candle, stay offline for an hour and breathe in the outdoors if you can. Embrace the silence, stay in the stillness. Never, ever criticize yourself, your choices, your past or your decisions. They are what make you who you are: a beautiful expression of the Divine.
Somehow many of us disconnected from nature and spend the coming days rushed and stressed and constantly feeling we have not done enough. In Nature, the cycle of life returns to stillness in winter. And it is from the stillness that everything is reborn. When we flow with nature, winter is for us a time of stillness. A time to look deep within ourselves with love and compassion and to find our stillness which gives everything life.
– Written by Pina Marino
