Easy Ways to Observe the Summer Solstice 2021

The summer solstice is one of the best well known pagan holidays. It is the longest day of the year and can be a great way to recharge your daily life!

Jessie Eastland, CC BY-SA 4.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

There are many traditions surrounding the summer solstice, which normally occurs around June 21st. Some cultures celebrate with rituals at sacred sites, or with sacred dances. Some people like to attend festivals or perform rites on the solstice. However, you don’t need to go all out in order to have a fulfilling solstice. Here are (5) easy ways you can celebrate the summer solstice.

1. Go Outdoors

One of the easiest ways to observe the summer solstice is to spend some time outside, preferably in nature. This can be a break from your normal daily routine and a reminder of humanity’s roots. Get outside and go for a walk, do some gardening, bike, or just bask in the sun! Studies show that time outside can help relieve stress, and there is no better day to get some stress relief than the longest day of the year. You can reground and balance yourself for the coming months just by being outdoors

2. Have a Bonfire

The summer solstice has always been linked to fire. Grab some friends to enjoy the shortest night of the year with a bonfire! Gathering around a fire is one of the oldest traditions of the solstice. You can put one some music, or retell stories or myths around the fire. if you can’t use a bonfire, a firepit is an easy substitution. Fire is used not only to ward off the darkness and bring light, but it can also be used in praise of the sun or to attract luck.

3. Meditate

Meditation and reflection are great activities for the solstice. You can meditate at sunrise, sunset, or at the midpoint of the day. If you’re like me and super busy, a quick five to ten minute meditation may be all you have time for. At the midpoint of the year, you can meditate and reflect back to the goals you set at the beginning of the year. The summer solstice is a good time to see what progress you’ve made and make plans for the second half of the year.

4. Clean

It sounds odd, but the solstice is a good day to clean, especially tools. If you have a tool you use often in the course of your work or daily life, take some time today to properly clean it. Get detailed here, and pamper your tools a bit. Make any repairs necessary and have the tools ready to go for the rest of the year. If you are a practitioner, today is one of the best for cleansing your tools and workspace, refreshing any active circles, and cleansing yourself of any influences.

5. Gather with Family and Friends

As corny as it may sound, the solstice can absolutely be a day for community and gathering together. While we are used to hearing this around the Christmas holiday season, the summer solstice is just as good a day to come together. Even if you don’t participate in a rite, or want to hold a bonfire, just gathering with those you love can be a powerful moment. This is especially true in 2021, when many of us have spent the past year apart. Being able to be together, even for just a few moments, is something to deeply appreciate. If you’re in an area still under stay at home orders or where gathering is discouraged, please consider a video call or Zoom meeting.

Adrem68, CC BY-SA 3.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0, via Wikimedia Commons

There are many ways to celebrate the solstice, from the complex to the simple. What matters most is that what you do resonates with you. What do you like to do for the solstice? Let us know in the comments!

Creature of the Week: Axhandle Hound!

This week’s creature is a “fearsome critter” from the forests of Wisconsin and Minnesota. The Axhandle Hound is a nocturnal dog-like creature with a whip thin body and a head shaped like the head of an ax.

Fearsome Critters, Written by Henry H. Tryon • Illustrated by Margaret R. Tryon(Cornwall, NY: Idlewild Press, 1939), CC0, via Wikimedia Commons

This thin, troublemaking hound has a preferred diet of axe handles. At night, it will sneak into lumberjacks’ camps and steal the handle off of the axes! They will store some of the handles away to eat later.

Lumberjacks report that the Axhandle Hounds are not aggressive, they just like to cause a bit of mischief and eat the handles off of the axes. Some report that they make for expensive pets, as all they will eat is ax handles.

Want to read more? Check out The Unnatural History Museum entry on them!