Ponderings of our Spiritual Life Director 12-21-22

Happy Solstice! Merry Yule!

I treasure this time of year. To be able to sit in the dark with my colorfully lit tree and a hot cup of cider is a gift I give myself each year. The gentle darkness feels like a sacred time for reflection– to figure out what I need to let go of and what I want more of in my life. Seeds germinate in the deep dark ground, as does the creating spirit that gives us life in the ground of your being. We have to pay attention to it, though. It doesn’t just happen on its own. This naturally feels like the season for it. As adrienne maree brown says, “what we pay attention to grows.” Take some time to slow down this season and pay attention to your creating spirit. What is it calling you towards? What soul nourishing food do you want more of? What do you have to let go of in order to get that?

what we seed in the dark grows

the darkness is so powerful that whiteness tried to turn the world against it

but the darkness remains

the darkness grows everything you love

and when everything dies

it returns to the delicious dark

the wet and waiting earth

who only operates in miracle

nothing is broken inside the darkness

everything is becoming life

longing for life

reaching up from a molten heart

full of belonging

on the edge of flight

so driven

the darkness knows no separation

memory is dream is a thrill in the flesh

i race towards the poem

that i alone can hear

and in answering the call

i remember i am nothing alone, nothing.

surrendering to the truth

frees me, leaves me whole

i overflow with a thundering joy

that only darkness can hold

what do you need? what does our species need? write it down, everything, and show it to the dark, whisper it to the dark. fold it and plant it under your bed. in the dark.

-by adrienne maree brown