Take Time to Sit in the Sun

Walter Kish

I am writing this on that singular day known as the summer solstice, when the sun blesses us with the longest stretch of sunlight of any day of the year.Appropriately, the day is clear, bright, warm and sunny.The sun’s warmth and brilliance permeates not only the body but the spirit as well, engendering an unmistakable sense of happiness and joy at being able to partake of it’s life-giving energy.

Since mankind first figured out the astronomical patterns that govern the earth’s seasonal cycles some many thousands of years ago, we have celebrated this special day that marks the beginning of nature’s most productive and fertile season.In virtually every culture, every region of this earth, and every period of history, this event has been marked by rituals, feasts and celebrations.The predominant focus of these have been paying homage to the sun, the ultimate source of all energy and life on this planet, the affirmation of life which flows from this energy, and the celebration of nature’s abundance and fertility.

For most who were born, raised and currently live in an increasingly technological and urban world, such celebrations may seem anachronistic and irrelevant to today’s values and realities.The official start of the summer is simply a reminder to ensure that the air-conditioning is in good enough shape to last the summer.

I consider myself fortunate to have been born and raised during my early years in the wilderness of northern Quebec.There the changes of season were dramatic and a fact of life that one acknowledged, adapted to and enjoyed.Later, as a teenager growing up on a farm in the NiagaraPeninsula, I learned to appreciate the cycles of nature, the fertility of the earth and the ecological interdependence of all life forms on this planet.Understanding the natural harmonies of life and nature provided me with a certain sense of grounding and appreciation for my place in the grand scheme of things.Above all it taught me not to take life for granted, but to treasure all its infinite variety of possibilities and moments.

Interestingly, I see this same outlook on life deeply rooted in much of what I know about Ukrainian history and culture.Ukrainians have always had a strong relationship with the land and the earth’s natural cycles of growth and fertility.

The summer solstice, for example, has been marked since pagan times in the form of IvanaKupala, an annual festival that celebrates the arrival of summer and the fecundity of nature.Life and rebirth is a dominant theme reflected in our folklore and traditions, includingthe incomparable art of the “Pysanka”.Much of Ukrainian art, music and dance is characterized by its life-celebrating spirit and energy.

Above all, Ukraine’s turbulent and difficult history taught its people not to take life for granted, but to enjoy it to the fullest, for there were never any guarantees about tomorrow.Live today as if it may be your last, for tomorrow the Huns may plunder and kill, the Tatars may ravage and steal, the Turks may take you into slavery, the Russians or Polish nobility may grind you into the dirt, the Communists may starve or exile you, or the Nazis may hang you from the nearest tree.Treasure each moment, and take joy in the fact that the sun shines and that you are alive to enjoy it.

For all our technology and so-called sophistication, I think we have lost something valuable by forsaking most of our original ties with the natural earth and the basic forces of nature.We live increasingly in a virtual, artificial world that isolates us from the elemental forces that shaped us as human beings and created what once was a sublimely beautiful and fertile world.What we are increasingly becoming aware of, is that our erstwhile wonderful science and technology is woefully mismanaging the ecological equilibrium of this planet and threatening its very existence.

We need to re-establish a healthier respect and relationship with nature and our mother earth.We need to once again become part of nature rather than her conquerors.The rhythms of nature are a part of us, and we will only be truly happy and successful as a life form when we recognize this fact and trust in nature’s life-giving energy rather than our own artificial and destructive man-made forms.

Take some time to sit in the sun, go for a walk in the woods, plant some seeds in the ground, swim in the sea, eat some fresh fruit and vegetables straight from the garden, and above all, thank God you are alive.Happy Solstice!