Winter can be a difficult time for any of us grieving, or experiencing feelings of sadness or loneliness. And yet there is always beauty to be found in amongst it all. This week’s episode, Midwinter Light: Holding joy and sadness in December, is about allowing ourselves all the feelings, and encouraging us to take some quiet time to think about those we love and miss as the world rushes all around us.

So many of you have shared how you have been through difficult things this year. For some of you, I know that all you want this year is one more Christmas with a loved one. I want you to know that you are not alone in your experience of things being hard in this season, and I hope that together, we can honour the sadness and also look for the light.

This is the week of the Winter Solstice, when the darkness begins to shift into light. We can lean into the darkest dark, or we can welcome the promise of that light. I find that we tend to hold both the dark and the light at this time of year, because memories come flooding back as Christmas moves in, and some of those are beautiful and some of those are painful.

We might sense deep gratitude for those who are here and a bone deep ache for those who are not. We might, at the same time, be aware of all of our blessings and all of our longings. The thing is, we don’t need to resist any of it. The Winter Solstice is an ancient ritual event in the human calendar that invites us to simply sit with it, all the sadness and the joy, the darkness and the light. I hope Episode 6 is a balm for your soul.

This episode includes:

* Thoughtful words to comfort you when things feel hard

* Some reflections on the symbolism of the Winter Solstice

* Some love for sweet robins

* Delicious, nourishing recipes for you and for your furry friends

* Get ahead tips and an invitation to seek out shooting stars

With inspiration from Donna Ashworth, Machine Soul Collective, EC Krupp, Carolyn MacVicar Edwards, Charles Baudelaire, Elena Brower, Kim Krans, Charles Bertram Johnson, Fog Chaser, Hannah Langdon, Amber Guinness, Royal Museums Greenwich, Songbird Survival and the RSPCA.

You can listen on iTunes/Spotify or here on Substack. I hope you absolutely love it.

Wishing you many blessings in this final full week before Christmas.

Beth Xx

LOVELY THINGS FOR YOU

* This week’s giveaway @bethkempton on Instagram - You could win copies of The Country Commonplace Book by Miranda Mills, Calm Christmas and a Happy New Year by Beth Kempton, Hold Nothing by Elena Brower and The Gifts of Winter by Stephanie Fitzgerald plus a place on my gentle writing course Words Heal). Enter here.

* Register for my Winter Writing Sanctuary here (it’s FREE!)

* Gratitude sale on all my courses extended over Christmas - get support to do what you love at dowhatyouloveforlife.com (30% off courses, 50% off bundles!)

BOOKS MENTIONED

* Joy Chose You by Donna Ashworth

* The Return of the Light by Carolyn MacVicar Edwards

* Les Fleurs du Mal by Charles Baudelaire

* Hold Nothing by Elena Brower

* Christmas with the Princes by Hannah Langdon

* Winter in Tuscany by Amber Guinness

OTHER LINKS MENTIONED

* Midwinter Light by Machine Soul Collective featuring Alexander Tennant

* Research by EC Krupp quoted in The Winter Solstice by John Matthews

* The Wild Unknown Alchemy Deck by Kim Krans

* Snow by Charles Bertram Johnson on poets.org

* A Simple Carol by Fog Chaser

* National Robin Day

* Songbird Survival’s tips for helping robins in winter

* Merlin ID app

* Winter by Walter de la Mare on poets.org

* Ursids Meteor Shower (via Royal Museums Greenwich)

* DIY Christmas Treats Recipes for dogs, cats, rabbits and guinea pigs via the RSPCA

INGREDIENTS for Baked Fennel with Chilli and Parmesan

(from Winter in Tuscany by Amber Guinness)

You will need:

* 2-3 fennel bulbs

* 1 garlic clove, finely crushed or chopped

* ½ teaspoon of chilli flakes

* Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

* Olive oil

* 1 tablespoon unsalted butter

* A hunk of parmesan

INGREDIENTS for DIY Christmas Treats for Dogs (from the RSPCA)

You will need:

* 1 cup whole wheat flour

* Half a cup of creamy peanut butter (but make sure it doesn’t contain xylitol)

* Quarter of a cup of mashed banana

* Quarter of a cup of vegetable stock

Blessing for those we love and miss, by Beth Kempton

May you have whatever kind of Christmas you want and need this year.

May your loved one be present in your mind, in your heart,

In whatever way you want them to be.

May anything unsaid be as if it had been said.

May anything that needs forgiving be forgiven.

May anything that is complicated fall away.

So you are left with the flickering light of an everlasting connection, which reaches back through time, across space, between hearts.

May the depth of your loss be evidence for the vastness of your love.

May it help you see into the heart of being,

And remind you to celebrate wonder,

and to stay aware that there is an imprint of your loved one on everything you do, if you invite it.

May you honour those who have helped you through the darkness

and recognise your own contribution

to the world as the healer you are becoming.

May you show compassion to yourself,

and to others who are suffering,

whether or not you know their names.

May you continue to be interested

In both the remarkable and unremarkable

which make this life,

and see beauty in the ordinary

every single day.

May you have whatever kind of Christmas you want and need this year.

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit calmchristmas.substack.com