Winter Solstice

In the Bleak Midwinter

Winter’s threshold approaches the northern hemisphere this week, the time of year when the subsolar point–the point at which the sun meets the earth at a 90 degree angle, its greatest intensity–reaches the Tropic of Capricorn at 23.5 degrees south of the Equator. The earth’s tilt in December holds the arctic zone of the northern hemisphere in complete darkness. 

A Midwinter day in Western Washington, at about 47 degrees north, comes with eight hours of low-angle (i.e. low intensity) light and sixteen hours of darkness. An inverse of Midsummer, often paired with amplifying meteorological conditions like the atmospheric river flowing above us this week, this time of year has been appropriately dubbed “The Big Dark.”

Heavy rain is falling now, a staccato on the metal roof. The woodstove ticks along with its own rhythm, like an enthusiastic concert goer who can’t clap to the beat. The dog has given up on outside and has parked herself in front of (and at times, and alarmingly so, underneath) the wood stove. An inch and a half of rain has fallen in the last 24 hours; an inch and a half will fall in the next 24 hours, too.

Stay Social, Stay Busy, Stay Active, Stay Out

Ask a Northwesterner how they make it through a winter, and you’re likely to hear something along these lines: 

“Make plans with friends. Keep them. Force yourself to stay social.”

Or, “Pick a hobby–build a wooden kayak, knit a sweater, take up artisanal bread baking, build a bicycle from parts–and keep busy.”

Or, “Exercise a lot–you need the endorphins, you need to stay in shape.”

Or, “Get outside, as often and for as long as possible.”

All good advice, and I remind myself of and practice these things annually. Especially the last–getting outside for long stretches–for its particular effectiveness at battling winter blues as well as other ailments and illnesses.  

Nadir

nādᐧir – the lowest point; the point on a celestial sphere directly below an observer

The term Midwinter is confusing today because we recognize four seasons. But the year was once conceptualized as halves–summer and winter. The seasons changed at the autumnal and vernal equinoxes; the solstices were the halfway points in the bi-seasonal annual cycle.

In the case of Midwinter, the darkest hour is also the inflection point. The moment in which the earth’s axis reaches its most extreme tilt is followed by the moment in which it begins its slow tilting in the opposite direction. With each degree of tilt, an extra measure of daylight, meted out in minutes over the course of months until we arrive at Midsummer.

Stay Alone, Stay Idle, Stay Rested, Stay In

I have to wonder, considering the rest of the living world in winter, why we pretend as if winter changes nothing. As if we have no excuse to be less productive, less goal oriented, less driven, less social. As if summer was an ideal, one we were obligated to operate from, regardless of the external conditions. 

There is less, far less, light in the winter. Every other living thing (though I say this hyperbolically, not definitively) is affected by the halving of solar energy around the Winter Solstice. But when we experience the symptoms of less sunlight–depression, low energy, increased sleep requirements, increased caloric intake, slowed cognition–we pathologize it as seasonal affective disorder. As in, How dare you be affected by the season!

While every other living thing slows or halts its living processes entirely, we fight our inclinations to seek solitude, welcome stillness, rest more, stay in. 

Weird.

I want to practice resilience, not denial. I want to learn how to accept what is, whether that inspires me to tarp up in Goretex and brave the elements or nap under a wool blanket in front of the wood stove. 

(Em)Bracing Winter

I love etymology. I love word families. Like this one, which root derives from ancient words for arms: brace, bracing, embrace.

Brace: noun–a supportive device; verb–to support, to prepare for something difficult or unpleasant

Bracing: adjective–fresh and invigorating

Embrace: noun–a hug, the act of accepting and supporting something; verb–to hug, to eagerly accept

I love to braid these definitions into a wintery mix of an invitation. I love the thought of deriving fortification (if joy is too big a stretch) by facing difficulty with open arms.