For those of us in the Northern Hemisphere, at least.
Without the dark, the light would be meaningless. Without the light, the dark would be endless. There is no better teacher of this lesson than our lovely, ancient, wounded planet, who spins her way along her path, her lifetime so much more than ours.
Today it is predicted to be fifty degrees here. Today it is hard not to feel grief for what we have done to our home, along with gratitude for her greatness.
Tonight we will light our candles and be thankful for the deer who bed down in our woods and the coyotes who share our paths, for the chickadees who stay with us through the winter and the owls who call through the night, for those who sit at our table with us and for the light and the dark that shape our lives.
Blessings to you all!