Hello Sweet Beings –
Blessings to the darkness.
Here in the northern hemisphere we are approaching the Winter Solstice and are in the darkest time of the year. It is an invitation to slow down, curl in, drop back and tend the interiority of life. It is the calling of the cave and the soil to be held in quiet consideration and contemplation. It is long nights, short days, clouds and wetness for many of us. It is the blessing of the wheel of life that calls us to tend what is not so obvious…roots, ideas, dreams, yearnings. What is asking for your attention in this time of darkness?
Blessings from the darkness.
I am not opposed to light in all its beauty and gifts. But, I do also relish darkness and its importance to so many things. Darkness offers space for beings and ideas to germinate, ripen and ready themselves for light and exposure. It is a time of pausing and slowing down so we might discover what really wants to emerge and not just what is expected from the outer world. We grow in the dark wetness of the womb, ideas often need space for incubation before being shared, and we might also discover that some things don’t want to emerge into the light. The cycle of dark and light is one that is entangled in all things.
Blessings in the darkness.
In my neighborhood, our house is the only one without any lights. Everyone else seems very committed to bright lights attached to structures, trees and bushes. A few weeks ago, while camping on the Oregon coast, we took a nightly stroll around the camp ground and were amazed (and honestly horrified) by the almost neon lights that adorned many of the large campers! These lights made it seem almost like day (even with their wild colors) and spread well past their allotted camping spot. The glory of the stars was obliterated. It almost seems that we have gotten scared of darkness and so feel the need to banish it at all costs. I can appreciate the play of color and light and the celebration of the return of light But I do know that we need the dark. The Light needs the dark! I wish we had a ritual where we all turned all our lights off for these last few dark weeks and then slowly lit candles and single lights to coax and welcome the sun’s return rather than banishing darkness all together.
And I also wonder about the more than human world and their need for dark, quiet and sleep. The trees need night as well, as do the birds and the squirrels deserve some quiet and rest! They need these cycles as much as we do. In fact, we all are inherently in this cycle of dark and light no matter how much we push against it…we are part and parcel of this amazing earth. So, I invite us to find ways to slow down, turn inwards, turn the lights down, or even off, sit in the quiet and rest. It might be just want our soul is asking for… to say no to the party and sit with a candle, just for a night. Light will return! And it will be all that more glorious from the vantage point of soft darkness. What ways might you tend this season for yourself?
May we find ways to tend to the dark, quiet stillness nature is offering us, even if just for an evening
May we slow down enough to let the nourishing darkness envelop us like blanket
May we trust that light will again emerge
May we bring wild blessings and fierce love to all we encounter
Practice Prompts:
- Practice not turning on all the lights in your home, either first thing in the morning or in the evening. Perhaps shower in the dark or sit with a cup of tea by the window and watch the light change during dawn or dusk. Maybe light a candle (I highly encourage beeswax and not paraffin) and see what comes to life in the glow of a candle that is unseen in the glare of a light bulb. What is the feeling of darkness on your skin? What can be perceived differently through each of your senses in the darkness?
- Play with creating a cave or making a nest and taking a rest. Use all the comfy warm things you can find. Spend some time there with a book and low light or headlamp, or simply resting with eyes closed, or listening to some glorious music. If this brings up some discomfort, let that be part of your experience as well…welcome it into the cave to lie down next to you and rest. See what happens.
- I offer one to one sessions, in-person in Bend, Oregon, and virtually all over the world. These sessions are centered on supporting you finding nervous system capacity and resiliency through various practices including but not limited to Somatic Experiencing®, Continuum Inquiry, Safe and Sound Protocol and various embodying practices. Respond to this email or schedule a free 20 minute Exploratory Session.
Practice Opportunities:
In Person:
- Continuum Playshop Series…Wednesdays, January 7, 14, 21, 28, 6-7:30pm…Continuum, School of Shadow Yoga, Bend, OR
- Embodying Presence; Continuum Inquiry & Deep Perceiving Retreat…Breitenbush Hot Springs, Oregon…May 15-17, 2026
Virtual:
- Yoga for Resilience, Mondays, 9:30-11am PT, livestream through Body of Insight (no class Dec 22 & 29)
- All Levels Yoga, Sundays… Jan 18, Feb 15, Mar 1, Apr 19, 9:30-11am PT, livestream through Two Dog Yoga
- On Demand Yoga Practices…All Levels… through Two Dog Yoga
Inspirational Wisdom
Sweet Darkness
When your eyes are tired
the world is tired also.
When your vision has gone,
no part of the world can find you.
Time to go into the dark
where the night has eyes
to recognize its own.
There you can be sure
you are not beyond love.
The dark will be your womb
tonight.
The night will give you a horizon
further than you can see.
You must learn one thing.
The world was made to be free in.
Give up all the other worlds
except the one to which you belong.
Sometimes it takes darkness and the sweet
confinement of your aloneness
to learn
Anything or anyone
that does not bring you alive
Is too small for you.
