I'm dusting off my annual Solstice diary and reposting it today. It's not long, but it's heartfelt.
Although I am not there now, for a lot of years I lived in the Pacific Northwest.
Of all of the meanings that have been assigned to the winter holidays -- be they Christian, Jewish, cultural, pagan, secular, whatever -- what has come to be, for me, the most meaningful aspect of this season is the solstice.