SOLSTICE BLESSINGS!

A circle of adults dance as the sun rises, children and families watch, colourful flowers and trees create the perfect scene

We’re at the halfway point of the year, how have the past six months been for you?  (The months seem to have sped by).  As usual, with the quarter festivals of the year – the Solstices and the Equinoxes - the energies intensify as we get nearer to it.

Our frequency is being upgraded and our vibration continues to be raised higher.  If you notice you’re becoming more sensitive and feeling a bit on edge, or you react more to sounds, bright light and smells seem stronger than usual, it’s all part of it - as is disturbed sleep and weird dreams.

This will pass once your body has integrated the expansion you are going through, which usually takes a few days.  Get outside as often as you can and go for a walk to ground your energy.  You may also feel super-sensitive being around people, listen to what your body needs and nurture yourself.

Summer Solstice, also known as Midsummer, is the longest day of the year that marks the halfway or midpoint of the year.  It’s one of the four quarter festivals in the Wheel of the Year which invites us to celebrate and honour the seasons.  In the Pagan tradition it’s called Litha and is the perfect time for handfasting, which is the pagan wedding ceremony.

Summer Solstice is the peak of magickal power - especially at sunrise - and it’s worth getting up early to see it, you can feel the energy of the Earth quickening as the Sun rises.  It’s a day of empowerment which is why we’re encouraged to be out in the Sun that day so that we can literally get ourselves powered up!

It’s a day of celebration, of celebrating the light given to us by the Sun, of celebrating the riotous beauty of Mother Nature at this time of year.  Celebrating our bodies by warming them in the sun, frolicking in the waters of the seas and lakes and having fun with each other.

A lot of traditions around the world pay homage to the Sun God on this day with fires and fire rituals.  On Summer Solstice night it’s traditional to light bonfires after sundown and celebrate with each other by sharing summer food and drink, appreciating the fertile beauty that surrounds us with table displays and wearing crowns of summer flowers such as Sunflowers, Roses, Jasmine, Ferns, Ivy, Buddleia (the Butterfly bush), Geraniums, Lilies etc, etc.

You can also use herbs such as St. John’s Wort, Mint, Basil, Sage, Calendula – the petals of which can be sprinkled over your salads, I use Calendula petals in my winter foods, it’s like sprinkling sun energy into the food.  And of course, there’s things like Lavender and Fennel, all of which can be incorporated into your food – yum, delicious!  These herbs and edible flowers can also be dried and made into herbal teas so that you can continue the goodness throughout the year.

By the way, if you can’t do a bonfire where you are, then candles will work just as well.  Be safe with any kind of fire that you are using and be respectful of where you are doing it.

The Universe grants wishes on this magickal day, it’s a time to tune into the Fae, the Faeries, as they are the messengers of the Universe on this particular day.  When you’re out in Nature on Summer Solstice, see if you can spot them or hear the messages they want you to hear.

As this is a day of empowerment and the veil between the worlds is thin, be open to receiving ideas and pay attention to your dreams around this time, write them down as they will contain messages and information for you.

On the longest day and shortest night of Summer Solstice, the Universe wants you to become conscious of your gifts and start using them.  This is a magickal and fertile time, make the most of it.

I love that this time of year celebrates light and fire.  The fire that burns in our Soul and keeps us going.  That fire in the belly that helps us get through the tough times.  When you have a dream or goal, that fire will keep you heading in the right direction.  So, on this day, tune into fire energy and absorb it, get out in the sun and fill yourself with divine warmth on all levels of your Being.

Make some time and space on this day to open yourself to the magick that is available for you.

Here’s a Summer Solstice chant I wrote about the Sun.

 I am the fire that burns within your Soul

I am the Holy light that fills and makes you whole

I am the Flame within that never dies

I am the Sun that will ever rise

Power of the Sun we honour you this night

We leap across the fire to keep our spirits bright

Power of the Sun, fire in the night

We leave behind, that which binds, to restore our sight

I am the fire that clears away the old

I am the holy light that guides your soul

I am the Flame of Love for which you yearn

I am the Sun; I will always return.

 Blessed Be

June has always been a special month for me, I got married to my lovely hubby on the Summer Solstice, 22 years ago.

We didn’t have a handfasting though, as we got married in Alaska, however a few days later we were given an unexpected blessing when a Lakota Sioux American Indian played his drum and sung us a Lakota love song in honour of our union, it was very special.

Have a wonderful Solstice y’all!