Winter Solstice 2016

Solstice today – the shortest day of the year and the turning point to longer days ahead (for those of us in the Northern hemisphere, that is). Solstices and equinoxes feel like a big deal around these parts – I can guarantee you that there will be many bonfires roaring tonight in rural Nova Scotia.

I had my solstice fun last night and into the early hours of this morning – a thai food feast with friends, complete with stories, laughter, wood stove warmth, general snuggling and several experiments to determine how many large dogs and people could fit on one loveseat at one time.

In contrast, this evening is a quiet one for me. An introspective evening at home with Knitflix and Salinger.

Around sunset today, I went out and took some photos of Lunenburg Harbour. It was a beautiful evening, plus 3 degrees Celsius, pink light – very, very pretty and calm.

Lunenburg, NS – viewed across the harbour, solstice sunset

Ducks in the harbour

As I walked and admired the view, I was thinking about agape and philia. (I fear J.D. Salinger would have labelled my mood today as an "oppressively-deep" one*).

Agape, philia, storge and eros are four types of love that were described by ancient Greek philosophers. Storge is familial love – the natural love between parents, children, siblings, etc. Agape is divine love, the love God feels for humans and humans for God. Myself, I feel the divine in the world, and so agape is how I label the wonder, delight and peace I feel in connection with, for example, trees in general, The Crooked Wood, the pink glow this evening, the beaches, the starry sky last night, etc.

The (snow-covered) Crooked Wood – December 18, 2016

I am thinking about philia today particularly because of the dinner party I enjoyed last night – I was the only single person at a dinner party with 4 pair-bonded sets of folks. It can be easy to feel left out and at odds in a situation like that, yet I did not – I felt very beloved and included. Eros (erotic love) is on hiatus in my life – paused for a long stretch of heart-healing work and to give space to the processes and energies of peri-menopause. Particularly in its absence, I feel very conscious that I am graced by the love that I share with my friends and in my community.

To quote the entry on philia from Wikipedia: "In his Rhetoric, Aristotle defines the activity involved in philia (τὸ φιλεῖν) as:

'wanting for someone what one thinks good, for [their] sake and not for one's own, and being inclined, so far as one can, to do such things for [them]' (1380b36–1381a2)" (Emphasis mine).

I feel blessed with people in my life who have so much of this kind of heart generosity, who go out of their way to share meals, make plans for fun activities, stay in touch and let me know that I am loved, valued and not alone. And I am grateful for the impulses in my own heart that cause me to offer lifts, do favours, cook meals, join in the fun and give and receive hugs with my whole heart.

The beauty of a chainsawed love letter, received December 9, 2016

There are some pieces in me that feel badly broken. And there is much of me that feels whole. And in my best moments, I feel deeply grateful for all of it. 

 

And then of course there is Salinger. Who, while presumably knowing nothing of agape or philia, graciously forgives me for leaving him to go hang out with my friends. And purrs at me when I come home (as long as I feed him ;).

Salinger – cozy in our winter digs
("Make with the kibbles, Lady."

If you are in the Northern hemisphere on this day of least light, I hope you feel loved and fully awake to the knowledge that the earth is turning back toward the sun. Wherever you are, if you want hearts to shine on you, remember the description of philia – selfless acts for the good of others, because you wish them well – and make philia happen wherever and whenever you can.

*Referencing Franny and Zooey as usual: “Last month, Dean Sheeter (whose name usually transports Franny when I mention it) approached me with his gracious smile and bull whip, and I am now lecturing to the faculty, their wives, and a few oppressively-deep type undergraduates every Friday on Zen and Mahayana Buddhism. A feat, I haven’t a doubt, that will eventually earn me the Eastern Philosophy Chair in Hell.”
― J.D. Salinger, Franny and Zooey