Winter Solstice

Light is Coming to a Horizon Near You

What is a solstice? It’s the darkest part of winter. Yet paradoxically, it’s a time to celebrate light, and warmth, and life. A holiday for everyone, all welcome, no religion necessary. It’s just about the planet we all live on, tilting to and fro on its long journey around the sun.

And the solstice is also a point in time, although it’s different every year. This year it falls on Sunday, December 21. For those of us in the Northern Hemisphere, that’s the long-awaited moment when the days start getting longer. It’s the tipping point between light and darkness, measured to the minute—this year at precisely 10:03 a.m. EST. Set your alarm so you don’t miss it.

How on earth do the astronomers settle on this particular moment? It’s the instant at which you can see the sun directly over your head—if you happen to be vacationing in the Tropic of Capricorn. And where’s that, exactly? The Tropic of Capricorn sounds like a magical kingdom, somewhere to the east of Narnia, perhaps, or west of Westeros. Sadly, though, it doesn’t really exist. It’s an imaginary line drawn around the globe, passing through such pleasant places as Brazil, Madagascar, and Fiji.

When the sun is overhead there, it’s at its lowest ebb in the Northern Hemisphere. After the solstice has occurred, the sun begins to spend more time in our neck of the woods, rising a little higher in the sky at every noontime, beaming down on us for a little longer every day.

So the winter solstice is the moment when the tide starts to turn, and light starts to flow back into the world.

This increase in light affects every living thing. That’s not an exaggeration. The subtle increase of light triggers a host of behaviors in both plants and animals, including human ones. Plants begin to awaken as photoreceptor cells sense the light. Inside every tree, house plant, and shrub are slow stirrings, invisible to us, as cells divide and buds begin to swell. Birds notice the light increase, and begin to think about moving northward, or trying out a chirp of a spring song. Raccoons wander and coyotes sing.

The tide of light is unstoppable.

We’re seeing the tide turn in other ways too. I don’t think I’m imagining it. There are cracks in the regime, and they’re widening every day. Election Day was a Blue Triumph. Each special election since has seen amazing results. Mayor of Miami?? Yes, first Democratic one in thirty years. Indiana legislators finding a spine. Voters getting nervous about health care. It’s hard to believe, but announcing that high prices at the grocery store are a hoax does not seem to be a winning strategy.

So as we head into the holiday season, take heart. There are gleams of light in the darkness.

Gosh, I’m dreading next year, though. It’s going to be midterms, midterms, midterms, all the time. The starting gun goes off the moment the ball drops on New Year’s Eve. There’s a lot of hard work ahead.

So during the holidays, take time off from politics, of course. But in the back of your mind, as the New Year approaches, give some thought to where you might focus your energies next year. Every House district is in play, every Senate seat. New York, my home state, will be much to the fore. The idea of Elise Stefanik as governor was too awful to contemplate—but surprise! She’s pulled out of the race. And now her vacated seat will be very much up for grabs. We have an opportunity to turn her district blue. I would so love to see the beautiful Adirondack Mountain region represented by someone with integrity and decency.

What district near you is flippable? What school board race hangs in the balance? What state senator needs your help?

If you seek a break from holiday festivities, in a quiet moment check out a remarkable group called Run For Something. Their motto is “You can change the system by changing who’s in it.” Propelled by the rocket fuel of the 2017 Women’s March, progressives created this organization “to get young progressive candidates from non-traditional backgrounds to run for and win state and local offices and create a next generation slate of political candidates. Since its founding, RFS has helped elect nearly 1,500 candidates across the country, including 18 candidates in red-to-blue seats in the 2024 election cycle.”

Jessica Craven, who writes a wonderful substack packed with useful ideas, is a big fan of theirs and recommends them as an organization well worth donating to. She says, “On election day in November 2024, Run For Something candidates smashed it all over the country, winning big in both red districts and blue. They’re a huge part of the reason we saw school boards, town councils, boards of supervisors, city councils, and more flipping blue.” They’ve won Congressional elections, too—Jasmine Crockett is just one of their alumnae.

If you’ve ever flirted with the idea of running for something—school board maybe—or know someone who has, this is a good place to start.

But right now the holidays are upon us. And whether you feel like a party animal or a deer in the headlights at holiday time, may you have a light-filled, peaceful, optimistic Solstice! And may the light follow us as we embark on the New Year.

Dear Friends,

Are you infuriated by the state of the world and wondering what to do about it? I hope you’ll continue to check out The Optimistic Activist.

Every now and then I post some ideas for doing something. How to get out the vote, spread the word, and support progressive candidates. Ideas for simple but effective activism. As easy, as practical, as do-able as I can make them.

Together, I think, we can really make a difference.

“Optimism is a strategy for making a better future.”

--Noam Chomsky

Anitasanchez.com