Wnter Solstice, and Moon painting by Everglades artist Jo-Ann Sanborn

Moon, 2012, Jo-Ann Sanborn

acrylic on canvas, 20"x24"

 

 

Today is the 2012 date for the Winter Solstice.  It's the day with the longest dark period in the Northern Hemisphere, so a just finished and rather mysterious moon scene might be appropriate for this notable day.

 

Ancient people marked the solstices with rituals and celebration. It is believed that the date of Christmas was set to offset some of the pagan rites of Winter Solstice.  Many Christmas traditions such as the Yule log, mistletoe, singing, and sharing of food may have been adapted from pagan celebrations.   

 

The passing of the winter solstice brings thoughts of longer days and springtime ahead. Days will begin to shorten, and our world will begin, slowly, to awake to a new year. The animals will begin spring mating rituals and the plants will respond with new growth.

 

If you want to mark the solstice yourself, notice where the sun sets tonight outside your home.  In the months that follow, you should be able to follow the sun setting further and further into the northwest.  It will continue to move in that direction until the time of the Summer Solstice in June, when it will begin it's return journey.

Winter Solstice, Merry Christmas, Everglades painting by Jo-Ann Sanborn

Today's Everglades painting is a make-over, or "new life" paining, done from one that's been around the studio for a while and never quite satisfied me.  As I began to reassess the problems and work on it, the painting developed a life of it's own.  Now it's cheery and inviting, with some great reflections.  All this happening while my mind was elsewhere.  Go figure!

This year late on December 21 the earth's axis will stop moving away from the sun and stop, and a second later will start back in the other direction towards the sun.  This marks a change from growing long dark nights to shorter nights and longer days.  The Winter Solstice is the time of year that marks the earth's farthest point from the sun.

Various cultures around the world celebrate this event.  The Winter Solstice starts the Celtic calendar, and Bronze age sites such as Stonehenge and Newgrange are set up to mark sunset and sunrise (respectively) of the Winter Solstice at their sites. 

Although there will still be much cold, January's growing light and warming earth will start a new cycle of growth in the Northern hemisphere.  In  the Everglades, it's the height of the dry season.  Animals will concentrate where there's a little water, and the only plants to survive will be those adapted to dry conditions. 

The Winter Solstice is close to the Christian Christmas, a time of joy and celebration of family and friends, and soon after the New Year will prompt us to look ahead, make positive changes, and to renew our commitments to ourselves and to others.

Between Christmas and New Years  I usually take a little time off, and I'll be starting a little early this year.  I wish you and your family a perfect mix of the sparkle of Christmas, the joy of giving and a big dose of unexpected love.   Merry Christmas and if you celebrate another Holiday this time of year, Merry that, too.

In the New Year I'll share my intentions for 2010, tell you how I did, and set up some new intentions for 2011.

Winter Solstice, Christmas Angels

The dead stick remains of long passed plants has welcomed every visitor to my front door for the last couple of months. I'd look at my hanging basket, dead since the end of the rainy season, be ashamed, and then run off and do something else. I'd pass by and remind myself that it had to be replanted, but would forget to get the plants while out doing errands. Over and over I said, I must put that on my list for tomorrow!

To my absolute delight a Christmas angel snuck the basket away--I didn't even miss the brown remains--and brought it back beautifully renewed. What a wonderful, happy Christmas surprise! Many thanks to my terrific, plant loving angel!

Another nice surprise came about when a client called to ask if they could come and look at paintings. I'm delighted to have visitors to the studio, and here on Marco people are always popping in and out, and many are only here for a short time, so I always try to accommodate. She had met me at one of the outdoor shows and liked my work. My impression was that she and her husband might like a new painting for Christmas. Imagine my surprise when she purchased five good sized paintings, to go into a bank that she's decorating! There's some framing and delivery to be done, so in the short time left before the holiday, daily painting will have to take second place.

Last night was the winter solstice, the very longest night of the year. The solstice is a Pagan holiday,and some people make special plans to visit one of the ancient sites, such as Newgrange, or Stonehenge to watch the light travel exactingly through the ancient structures at sunrise. I like the idea of celebrating the long cold days of winter getting shorter!