Winter Solstice Activities
- Dec 19, 2024
- 3 min read
Simple little rituals you can do for Winter Solstice this year.
For the last 20+ years, I have made a point of celebrating the Winter Solstice with my family. It looks a little different now that my children are adults and don't always have time to get together to celebrate the Solstice the way we did when they were kids, but I hope someday they will continue our traditions with their own children.
Nowadays, I wrangle my husband into my celebrations, and I spend Winter Solstice eve AND the following day (which is also the first day of Winter) performing little rituals and focusing on self care.
When my kids were still living at home, we always kicked off our Solstice Eve festivities with a gift exchange. We would draw names in early December, and take the next few weeks to make a homemade gift for our special person. Taking the time to make something unique and personal was something we each really looked forward to. While I won't be exchanging any Solstice gifts this year, I still think it's a wonderful tradition!
After exchanging gifts, we like to make Pomanders & decorations for the outdoors. Pomanders are made with oranges and cloves. You can take a toothpick and pop holes around the oranges, in patterns or in random spots, and then push whole cloves into the holes. Then tie up the oranges with red ribbons, and either hang them or display them in a bowl. They smell amazing and they will usually dry nicely as well! I keep them on display well into the new year. In addition, you can string up slices of oranges (fresh or dried), frozen grapes, cranberries, popcorn, and anything else you think the birds might like to eat. Making garlands like this is a nice way to give something to the birds wintering in your area. (Save these until the morning to hang)
The next thing we have always done is create a warm and hearty homemade dinner, complete with a seasonally-inspired dessert. Meals I usually cook are a pot-roast with veggies, or a hearty stew or chowder with freshly baked sourdough bread. One year my daughter made a berry pie with a beautiful crust displaying a braided pentacle. A special touch for our Solstice Eve meal is I like to set a formal table, and we always eat by candlelight. I usually put 10-20 candles on the table and the glow always feels magickal. It's a great reminder for us of the blessings we have in today's modern age with electricity. The only other lights on at our house will be the outside holiday lights, and of course our Christmas tree lights.
After dinner, we spend time sharing why we are thankful for each person at the table, and discuss what we wish for them in the new year. In past years we have played games, we have lit a bonfire, we have written down intentions on paper and burned them in the fire, and we have walked our neighborhood and looked at Christmas lights.
A special tradition I have observed each year is to wake up to watch the Sun rise on the following morning. As the Winter Solstice marks the longest night of the year, getting up the next moring to celebrate and welcome back the Sun has always feel very poignant. When my kids were young, we would bundle up and drive to the mountains where we could see the sun peek over the horizon while drinking hot chocolate and eating Scotch-eggs (a Winter Solstice treat I make yearly). After that we would spend the day enjoying togetherness...baking cookies and treats, taking a walk, and hanging our fresh fruit garland out for the birds.
Sometimes we would make Cinnamon-dough ornaments, cut in shapes of stars and trees. I still have a few of those ornaments that I put on my tree every year.
No matter what your Spiritual belief system is, celebrating the Winter Solstice is a wonderful way to welcome in the Winter Season. It's a beautiful time to slow down and appreciate the natural world around you, and to show gratitude to the people in your life that make life worth living. Winter Solstice Eve is on December 21st this year and the first official day of Winter is December 22nd. I hope you'll consider adding some of my Winter Solstice activities into your home this year.
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