The seasons turn as we approach the turning point, the Solstice… the longest night… just three short weeks away. And yet, the sky is beautiful this morning, a clear, deep blue graced with the lights of heaven. The world is still and silent, even the birds are hushed as dawn creeps over the horizon of a rain-washed world. The moon lights the village and touches the rooftops with silver. Branches are down in the lane and few are the leaves that still cling tenaciously to the trees, most stripped away by the vicious fingers of winter winds.
There is such strength in the grasp of leaf to twig, both so fragile they can be plucked and broken by a child, yet the bond of life so strong it can withstand the most inclement weather. Until it is time for them to fall.
Even when the leaves fall it is part of a greater renewal, the confetti of the marriage of the seasons, nourishing the earth and the tree from whence they fell. The tree sleeps through the winter, seemingly lifeless, husbanding its resources against the coming of spring. Beneath the skeletal surface of this dying time the life within shapes new leaves and blossoms, waiting in pregnant patience for the warm kiss of the sun.
Leaves fall, branches break… the old and sere stripped away by the turning wheel of the year, clearing the way for a green birth.
There is so much laid out before us, even in the avenues of our city streets. The life of nature is so strong and so beautifully balanced. So easy to damage when, with careless hands her children grasp at her skirts, taking anything that claims their attention and desire… yet strong enough to recover when we are no more.
In the little wood where we sometimes walk, the small dog and I, man has left his traces. From the earliest times, track and road have passed this way. From the air, the circled marks of ancient homes can be seen in the fields, the line of a Roman road, lost now to plough and furrow. And still we carve this little patch of green to serve our needs. Yet as soon as we turn our back the wild things cover our tracks, reclaiming the earth for themselves, our little lives more fragile than their delicate blooms.
In towns and cities, sites and factories that were once hives of industry fall silent as technology moves on and we are proud of our advances, not noticing the quiet crown of plant and sapling our forgotten edifices wear, the gentle but inexorable hand of nature taking back her own as soon as we depart.
The seasons of the earth are echoed too within our own lives… we are part of the cycle, our bodies dance to the same natal song of the seasons. Life springs from death, death from life in an endless round.
The cadence is echoed within us as we laugh for joy beneath the sun of summer and weep in grief when winter touches our hearts. In the dark days, we too may feel as if leaf and branch are being stripped from us, battered by the winds of change and the storms of emotion. Yet like the trees only the damaged and broken falls from us… the green heart is strong and holds the pattern of renewal within itself.
As the wheel turns it is easy to become lost in the dark days, feeling a verdant spring to be too far to reach, fearing in the shadows that it will not come. Perhaps, like the trees, we too are then husbanding our strength, withdrawing within where growth and renewal can work their magic unseen, ready to blossom at the first touch of the sun.
When the Solstice comes, the world, still facing the worst of winter, turns almost unnoticed towards summer. We know this, yet the winter is still to be endured. The days will lengthen, the light will be bright on days covered in snow, ice is yet to break open the cracked stones, and we will huddle by our hearths as if there is no warmth in the world, forgetting that we have passed the nadir and the eternal dance of the seasons carries us onwards towards a brighter dawn.
When we are lost in grief, gripped by the cold of fear, it is hard to see that light at the end of the tunnel, hard to believe that we have passed the worst point when we see a dark road still looming ahead. Yet this is the rhythm of life itself, as the earth holds us in the reassuring and loving embrace of a Mother and shows us that not all is lost in winter, it merely endures the frost while within, nourished by the fallen leaves that were stripped away by the storms and the turning year, the green life springs anew.
This is gorgeous writing and sentiment, Sue!! One of your best. I love it! Since we are living back in New York City, I love the short days because only at this time of year can we see the sunset from our window without buildings in the way. I love your reference to the bare trees, fathering the earth. To me they are more beautiful than ever after the leaves go, bare branches against the sky. A linear motif. Thanks for this beauty!
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Thank you, Ellen.
I am lucky to have only trees to block my view of the dawn here, though sunsets are still hidden by chimney pots.
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Reblogged this on Barb Taub and commented:
Sue Vincent’s luminous consideration: longest night, or the moment “…the world, still facing the worst of winter, turns almost unnoticed towards summer.”
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Thanks for reblogging, Barb.
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I have just finished putting my collection of bonsai trees to bed for the winter. Clearing away all the fallen leaves and making sure they are all safe to sleep until Spring… Their bare branches used to make me feel sad, worried that they might not return, and sometimes one doesn’t, but I have learned to accept and trust what I am given…
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Everything has its time and season… and will return to life, one way or another, even if not in the form we once knew.
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I think gardeners know this better than most!
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I agree, Jaye.
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Such a beautiful and thoughtful post, Sue. The sentiments you speak of we should all endeavour to remember.
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Thanks, Viv. It helps to remember that nothing ever stands still.
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Lovely, Sue. I felt the movement of the seasons and the wonder of life. We’ve much to be grateful for. 💗
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We have indeed, Gwen… and Nature is always a good teacher on that front. ❤
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Your post brings meaning to winter’s period of inactivity and rest.
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There is so much going on beneath the surface…
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Such a beautiful post, Sue xx
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Thanks, Helen x
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Reblogged this on Helen Glynn Jones and commented:
A gorgeous post from Sue Vincent about the cycle of the seasons, and of life itself. Well worth a read!
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A lovely tribute to the seasons, Sue. I am always well aware of the winter and summer solstices. They are harbingers in a way, a promise of change and reminder to enjoy the moment. Three weeks and the light begins it’s return – I love that.
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It is a nice thought to hold as the cold settles in.
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Beautiful photos and a lovely post
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Thank you.
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You’re welcome
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A beautiful post, Sue. It was always on the longest night we brought our tree into the house and the holly and felt the days would get longer even if it didn’t feel like it.
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My grandparents always ahered to that tradition too. It makes sense to being in the green on such a night… an affirmation of the return of spring.
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Wonderful insights, Sue. I used to be so resistant to winter and the cold, but have come to see it as a time to hunker down, cocoon myself, to renew through rest and reflection. I still need my sunny days, though, a string of gray ones can be tough to get through. ❤
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I love the clarity of winter sun… and the crispness of cold, frosty days, though I can live without it being too cold, grey and wet for too long!
I hope it snows this winter though… ❤
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Snowy days are quite magical, I love the hush that descends upon the land.
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Me too…and so does Ani who adores the snow 🙂
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