happy winter solstice. the days will now get longer as we slowly inch toward spring. i have held an image of the 'year' in my head for a long time - i always picture the months as if they are on an ellipse with a narrow top and long sides. at the top is the summer solstice and long days in the summer sun, the peak of the warmth. the year then starts descending to the bottom, cascading through autumn, slipping into winter. at the bottom is the winter solstice, surrounded by the glow of the holiday season. with the new year, the months begin the ascent into spring, pulling out of the cold, reaching to the summer sun. i am not sure when i first started thinking of the year this way, but somehow the circular cycle of it all gives me hope. trying to explain here what's in my mind isn't easy...this seems to capture it pretty well:

Whereas the Spring season is the time when life seems to be renewing itself and coming to the surface, Autumn is when things begin to shed, and the growth which was young in spring is now matured. Springtime energy speeds up, in the fall it slows down. The energy of Spring is upward, plants pushing upwards towards the bright sun, in Fall the energy moves downward, leaves falling away from the trees - Robin DuMolin

oh! today is a palindrome. 12-21. a balanced day.