Is it a time for whimsy?

Summer Solstice feels weird this year. 

Summer Solstice is a time of whimsy, play, and joyfulness.

It is a time where we're bursting with solar energy, filled to the brim with flower nectar and extroversion, gathering in gleeful groups for concerts, parties, river trips, and the occasional gnome-sighting expedition. 

But this year, I'm feeling far from whimsical.

I have many feelings right now, as I navigate this maybe-things-will-actually-change now era of hope and despair. I'm feeling humility, exhaustion, grief, openness, inspiration -- joyfulness is not exactly at the forefront of my heartspace. 

And, how exactly does one go about expressing "peak  extroversion" while social distancing?

At this time when we feel gravitationally drawn toward gathering in groups, it's simply not safe to do so. 

What then, is Summer Solstice this year? 

Summer Solstice is not just a time for whimsy -- it is also a major reset. 

If, like me, you set Intentions back at Winter Solstice or the New Year, then this is the halfway point for the year that you envisioned. 

Intentions are not just about what we want to accomplish -- they're about how we want our life to be.

They're about how we want to feel, what we want to work toward, what we value. Our Intentions are the blueprint of the world we'd like to build. 

And what a perfect time it is to revisit that blueprint, to mindfully re-imagine the type of world we want to build. 

At Solstice, we check in with the Intentions we set 6 months ago. We ask -- how are things going? What went well? What hasn't developed yet? How can I support my Intentions? 

We also do the work of evaluating whether these Intentions are still serving us, whether they still align with our truths and desires. 

This year has gone differently than any of us imagined. And yet -- the events and twists of this year are exactly the gift that is supporting you in your Unfolding -- or, if we're sticking with Solstice imagery -- your Sacred Blooming. 

Personally, I could use a good reset and re-imaging right now. I bet you could, too. 

I'll also toss in this reflection: over my years of honoring the seasonal holidays, I've found that one of their peculiar blessings comes from celebrating them even when I'm not in the mood. 

It's like going to yoga class, or exercising. Often, you don't feel like it. But you know you'll feel so much better after. You'll be glad that you did it. 

Many times, I've been setting up a Circle thinking "I don't know if I have the energy for this. I'm not really feeling the Equinox/Samhain/Lammas vibe tonight..." and, once it's begun, I think "This is magic. This is what I live for. This is what life is all about." 

Perhaps you, like me, are not feeling particularly whimsical or joyful. Perhaps you're wading through the heaviness, sorting out your feelings, charting out your next steps. And yet. 

Wouldn't a few moments of whimsy help you? Wouldn't it soothe your despairing soul to gaze adoringly into a flower? Wouldn't your spirit rise at the taste of flower nectar reaching your lips?
 

I invite you to celebrate Summer Solstice to the full extent of your feelings: your joy, your despair, and everything in between. I invite you to give yourself time for a major reset, and to give yourself the whimsy that your heart craves. 

If you would like to do all those things with me and the song birds and lusty, close-up footage of blooming flowers, keep scrolling ;)

Solstice Blessings to you,
Amanda