Return of the Light: A Winter Solstice Gathering with Horses

The Returning Light

At the winter solstice, we celebrate something we cannot yet feel: the return of the light. The mornings are still dark. The cold is settling in. Yet the days begin to lengthen, a little at a time.

There is comfort in this old turning. Yule gives us a reason to gather, to tend the fire, to remember what brings warmth into our lives. It also offers a moment to consider how we are entering winter. What has been asking too much of us? What have we been missing? What would it feel like to give ourselves some of the care we so readily give away?

On December 19, these questions will bring us into the company of horses at High Hopes Therapeutic Riding Center.

Horses invite a kind of attention that can be difficult to find in our everyday lives. They communicate through their bodies, through movement and stillness, through the space they seek or offer. To be with them, we have to become a little quieter ourselves. We begin to notice a lifted head, a turning ear, a step closer or farther away. And as we listen to them, we often become more aware of ourselves — our breathing, our pace, the tension in our hands.

A horse does not know the list you have waiting at home. He meets you through what is happening between you now. There can be such relief in that: a relationship that begins with your presence, with the possibility of paying attention and responding to one another.

• In the ring, leading, grooming, and observing offer different ways into that relationship. Walking beside a horse asks us to find our own direction while staying attentive to hers. We may discover how difficult it feels to ask clearly, or how quickly we hurry when we are uncertain. There is room to pause, try again, and experience what happens when we become more settled in ourselves. For those accustomed to putting their own needs aside, even a few steps taken with gentle confidence can mean something.

• Grooming brings us close to the warmth of another living body. Our hands have a simple task. The brush moves through a thick winter coat, and our attention returns to the horse beneath it. We begin to learn what she welcomes, where she is comfortable, how she responds. Care becomes an exchange of attention, and for a little while there is nowhere else we need to be.

• Even watching can change the quality of a morning. Given time, the smallest gestures become visible. We begin to recognize how much is happening in an apparently quiet moment, how much we miss when we are already thinking ahead.

This gathering is for the woman who has been holding a great deal. For the woman who wants to feel connected again, or who would simply love a few hours with horses and other women as the year draws toward its close. You need no experience with horses, and confidence is not a condition of belonging here. There is space to approach gently, to observe, and to find your own way into the morning.

• Our morning will begin with an oracle card pull and a question to carry into our time with the horses: Where might I welcome a little more softness into my life? There will be time to share what the card brings to mind, or simply keep it close as we enter the ring. Sometimes a word or an image helps us recognize something in an encounter with a horse that we might otherwise have passed by.

• A second oracle deck at the end of our time together will invite us to consider: What would I like to carry with me into winter? There may be a moment with the horses we want to remember, or something another woman shared that stays with us. Over tea, there will be space to gather these thoughts and hear one another.

• Everyone will create their own personal Winter Permission Slip, turning that reflection toward everyday life. What could you allow yourself this winter? An afternoon without obligations. Asking for help before we are exhausted. Returning to something we love. Each woman will have time to write her own permission slip, in words she may need to hear again.

Everyone will also receive a Winter Solstice herbal tea blend to enjoy at home — perhaps as you mark the returning light with a candle, tea, and a little time to yourself.

Around tea, there will be time for those experiences to find their words, and for the comfort of hearing one another.

Just before the Winter Solstice, this is our way of welcoming the returning light: through warmth, companionship, and a little more tenderness toward the lives we are living.

What You Can Expect

A gentle morning in celebration of Yule and the returning light:

• Opening circle and a guided reflection on the winter solstice

• Two oracle card pulls, each with a different question to explore

• Guided time with three horses in the indoor ring through leading, meditative grooming, and observation

• Space to reflect on what the horses have shown us and what we wish to carry into winter

• Creating your personal Winter Permission Slip

• Tea and a closing sharing circle

• A Winter Solstice herbal tea blend to take home

This two-and-a-half-hour gathering takes place indoors. No horse experience is needed.