The first day of fall, or the autumnal equinox, is September 23 in the Northern Hemisphere. On this day, the sun hovers above the equator, and most of the world enjoys nearly equal amounts of light and darkness. In traditional agricultural societies, the harvest season was drawing to a close, and people were working overtime…
Summer solstice, or Midsummer’s Day, is June 21. It’s the longest day of the year in the Northern Hemisphere when we enjoy the most sunlight and the shortest night. The sun rises to its maximum height, bathing the Arctic Circle – including parts of Sweden, Finland, Norway, and all of Iceland – in twenty-four hours…
December 21 is the first day of winter and the shortest day of the year in the Northern hemisphere. Parts of Canada, Alaska, Norway, Sweden, Finland, Russia, Greenland, and the northern tip of Iceland will experience 24 hours of total darkness. Winter could be a long, dark, and difficult time for many of our forebears….
Finally . . . the first day of spring is almost here! Here are some simple ways to celebrate. Explore Go on a hike and identify wildflowers if some are sprouting in your area. Or visit a local farm and see if you can get a glimpse of calves, lambs, or chicks in the barnyard….
“In the coldest February, as in every other month in every other year, the best thing to hold on to is each other.” – Linda Ellerbee So maybe I was a tad optimistic in that title. Perhaps I should have stuck with “fine” or “fair”. We are talking about February, after all. I often find…
The Pacific Northwest got hit by another epic storm last weekend, which dumped close to ten inches of snow then covered everything with a thick layer of ice. The ice isn’t as fun to play in as snow, but it makes for beautiful photos. I couldn’t get enough of the brilliant pink buds encased in…