Observing the Winter Solstice

Thanks to Caroline Burke, PhD, LP, for sharing this Great Idea in LeaderWise’s newsletter:

Dr. Burke reminds readers of the ancient practice of slowing down in recognition of the Winter Solstice – and encourages us to do the same in Being Still: Preparing for the Solstice.

The full article outlines specific ways to:

~breathe;

~notice solid ground;

~take a slow walk;

All of which are done with the intent of slowing the self in order to participate in winter’s slowing and death in preparation for the new life of spring.

This is hard to do as we bustle in preparation for the High Holy Day of Christmas, but our bodies, minds, and souls are wired for solstice rest, says Dr. Burke.

She encourages the use of a labyrinth as a tool for taking an intentionally slow walk and suggests finding a near-by labyrinth with the world-wide locator. We’ve added that link to our Labyrinths page, where you’ll find additional resources around labyrinth walking.

You might also enjoy creating your own snow labyrinth. You can find tips for that in last year’s Great Idea on the topic.

But don’t hustle around and add these things to your to-do list. Rather, stop as you read this and take a few deep breaths; allow those deep breaths to inspire future deep breaths throughout each day as we move through this time of rest and renewal with the Winter Solstice.