Happy Winter Solstice

 

Today, Thursday the 21^st, is the Winter Solstice here in the US.  For the first time ever, last night I ventured over to the Parowan Gap to catch the solstice sunset as it disappeared into the gap.  It has been unusually warm and dry here this month, and the air temperature was a balmy 54° when I got there.  I went last night instead of tonight because the sky cleared up in the afternoon, and I wanted to take advantage of that.  There is always a 5 day window for the solstices, as the movement of the sun appears to slow down and stop before moving again. So you have at least 5 days to do your ceremony!  The photo above was taken by someone else.  Note the snow on the ground!

I wasn’t quite sure about where to stand for the viewing.  This is a hilly area, and it required going up and down some steep slopes while I lined up my view and waited. 

These photos are of the sun approaching the gap.

Unfortunately, the horizon was a bit cloudy.  Here I caught the sun’s glow along the left side of the gap just before it disappeared in the haze. 

I would expect that a good photo would be had on a much colder day without any haze in the air.  Now I know where to go and can plan for next year. 

The Winter Solstice is the start of my New Year.  It is a time to look back over the past year and let go or come to completion with any events that no longer serve.  Then, there is an opportunity to create a new energetic for the coming year.  This is where a bowl burning or any other ceremony comes into play.  I will be doing my burning tonight, releasing the old and embracing the new. 

BTW—I will once again be presenting my on line workshop “Setting Your Energetic Template for 2024” on Angela Zabel’s podcast on January 2^nd.  More on that as we approach that date.  

So, Happy Solstice New Year to all of you.  May the coming year be the best ever for everyone. 

The Dark Time of the Year

 

Let me start out by saying that those of you in the Southern Hemisphere can ignore a good deal of this post.  Your time will come in 6 months!

We are now in the darkest time of the year, leading up to the Winter Solstice on the 21^st/22^nd.  It is a time for quiet, solitude, and for tilling your fertile ground in preparation for planting your seeds of manifestation on the Solstice.  This is the organic way of being this time of year.

Most people are experiencing just the opposite right now!  Recently a friend of mine asked me why I do not do Christmas.  First of all, I am not a Christian, and do not celebrate any religious holidays. This morning, I realized that since I am in the Highly Sensitive Person category, holidays such as this can be overwhelming.  It is not like the 4^th of July, for example, where you go to a parade, watch some fireworks, and that’s it.  Christmas goes on for days and days.

As a child, this time of year was simpler and relatively trauma free.  Back when I was married and had started on my spiritual path in a serious way, I just dreaded the holidays.  It got worse as the years went by.  When I got divorced and started my shamanic studies, I was literally ecstatic that I did not have to do this anymore.   

So regardless of your family and other obligations this time of year, I encourage all of you to take enough time for yourself each day.  Sit quietly and in a meditative state, gently go into the warm and dark space of the void.  Do your best to clear out all of the business and distraction in preparation for the Solstice and the planting of the new seeds for the coming year.  

For those of you in the Southern hemisphere,  you are having Summer Solstice coming up, but still all of the business of the holidays.  It is a mixed bag.  Nevertheless, take some time for yourself away from the holiday frenzy. 

Blessings to you all.

Nearing the End

We had arrived in Cusco the night before, and today was a Sunday.  We would do a few days of touring around the area before leaving for Lima and then home on Tuesday.  We were supposed to do a city tour in the morning, which included the cathedral, but because it was a Sunday, the cathedral was closed to tourists in the morning.  We did the city tour in the afternoon instead. 

After breakfast at the hotel, there was a bit of free time before heading up to the Inca fortress of Sacsayhuaman before lunch.  I thought I’d head over to the Cusco central square, the Plaza de Armas, and chill out for a bit.  After all, it was a Sunday so things should be fairly quiet. 

Not so!  These are the scenes I encountered when I got there.

I do not know what kind of event this was, but it was the first time I had ever seen the troops parading. 

An older couple were the honorees.

After hanging around for a brief while, I turned around and went back up the street past our hotel.  When I returned to the Plaza, this is how things looked.  Back to business as usual! 

I have to say that Peruvians love to celebrate, party, and have a good time.  On my previous trips there, there has always been some sort of event with parades, dancing and music.  

This is my last post on the trip to Peru.   Of course, there is much more to tell, but I did not want to make these posts into a travelogue!  Hope you enjoyed my stories and photos.

Orchids

 

I just love orchids.  Between Colorado, Utah and Wyoming, I have documented about 19 different species out in the wild.  It is always a thrill to find a new one. 

The orchid at the top was blooming right at the entrance to Machu Picchu.

Our hotel in Aguas Calientes was situated on a hillside in the jungle.  There were orchids scattered around the property, and they even had a very nice separate area where there were more orchids on display.  We were told that this was not the peak blooming time for them, but nevertheless, I saw quite a few nice ones.  Here they are. 

These orange beauties were in a museum garden near Lima.

These are not orchids, but begonias that were growing out of the cracks in the walls at Machu Picchu.

Apparently this discovery caused quite a stir in the world of botany at the time.