Lesley’s Blog

In the quiet of the morning, I was sitting waiting for my coffee to be done when I noticed the light coming through the window was hitting a colored glass in the open cupboard. The clear glass with swirls of blue and red was illuminating the corner of the white cupboards interior. I love it when the sunlight has you looking at a common object in a different light.

I wondered as I gazed at that light “Can I capture the true essence of what I’m seeing on my camera?” Knowing full well that by the time I retrieved my camera the sunlight would change even if ever so slightly. I did it anyway. After playing with the image and creating a few more with the sunlight my mind drifted to other things.

One of the Winter Solstice celebrations that I attend, participants are asked to bring two things. One is a burnable object that will be thrown into the bonfire. This object can be something you created or an object in nature. The intent of the object is to put your energy into it with something you want to let go of, such as sadness in your life or anger that you have been holding on to this part year. It is a house cleaning if you will, an opportunity to release into the fire that which you have been holding onto that no longer serve you.

It has been said that the universe doesn’t like a void. If you release something in your life that no longer serves your best and highest interest the universe will fill it with something else unless you are prepared to fill that space. Symbolically, energetically and physically when you place your burnable object into the fire you have opened up a clean space in your energy field. Now, what do you do with that space?

On Winter Solstice you fill it with light, hence the second object that you bring is a gift of light. Guests are instructed to wrap the gift placing no identifying marks to tell who brought the package. After the bonfire part of the ceremony is over people are invited to share in a potluck. In the center of the table are all the brightly colored packages and at the end of the meal the first gift of the night is chosen and the unwrapping begins.

There is an excitement in the air as you chose from the pile knowing what is given is in the spirit of joy. The joy is in finding a gift that that will light the void created by releasing your burnable object. Anticipation also fills the air as you wait to see who will be attracted to your gift.

The most common gift of light is……. you guessed it a candle. Most people think in terms of the physical form of light and how you can give that form to others. Candles light our way in the darkness. Being that they are the element of fire they also create magic and all of us hope for a bit of magic in our lives.

The fire of a candle helps to transform one burnable object into smoke and ash. The smoke rises up into the atmosphere and the ash is returned to earth, each cleansing and life giving in there ways. The fire also connects us to the other elements; air, earth and water each have their own magical properties.

Other favorite gifts are crystals, rattles, beaded necklaces to name a few. Sometimes it is not in the receiving of the gift that illuminates your being it is in the person who shares with you what that gift meant to them when they were draw to it as a gift of light. Just as the morning sunlight opened the way for me to see an ordinary colored glass in a different light, so might a gift you receive bring illumination to your life by looking at through the eyes of another.

All too often we are programmed to see things one way, that is until someone else shares their thoughts and feeling with you. Suddenly you find yourself considering other possibilities; new avenues open up in front of you leading you to perceive the world around you in a different light.

When you let go of the darkness that seems to surround you what light will you bring into your life to hold that space? This Winter Solstice what will your gift of light be?

“In the right light, at the right time, everything is extraordinary.” Aaron Rose