Celebrating Summer Solstice

Nine Ways to Honor the Summer Solstice

Sunday, June 21 marks the summer solstice in the Northern Hemisphere. The summer solstice, also known as midsummer, occurs when the tilt of Earth’s semi-axis is most inclined toward the sun. Solstice is derived from the Latin words sol (sun) and sistere (to stand still). The summer solstice is the longest day of the year and officially marks the start of the summer season.

For many bygone civilizations, the summer solstice held great religious and cultural significance. Worldwide interpretation of the event varies among cultures. But most have historically recognized it with festivals and rituals that center around fertility, birth and rebirth. Many of those traditions still exist in some form or another to this day.

We at Stemology love a time of rebirth and renewal. So, in the tradition of the summer solstice, we’re committing to nine ways of renewing our mind, body and spirit!

1. Review our goals. Summer solstice falls at about the halfway mark of the year. We’re going to take some time today to review those New Year’s Resolutions we made and asses our progress. What better time than now to recommit to our goals?
2. Recommit to our health. If summer solstice is the time of birth/rebirth, it only seems fitting that we would take stock of our health and recommit to our healthy routines. From exercise to healthy eating to mindful meditation, we’re going to recommit to our daily self care routine to ensure our most beautiful selves!
3. Replant our garden. Herbs and flowers picked during the summer solstice were believed by people in medieval times to carry healing energy above and beyond normal healing properties. While not necessarily scientifically sound, we’re going to honor the tradition by planting our own healing herb garden.
4. Reconnect with nature. Sometimes we get so up in our head with all of our “to dos” and task lists that we need to ground ourselves back in the present.
5. Reboot our travel plans. With the hustle and bustle of this year so far, we’ve let our travel plans fall to the wayside. So, this summer solstice we’re going to recommit to planning an amazing vacation this year. Maybe to visit Stonehenge in Britain. Stonehenge aligns with sunrise on the solstice, making it a breathtaking sight!
6. Refresh our wardrobe. Out with the old, in with the new. We’re taking summer solstice as a sign to discard all those clothes that we don’t like or don’t fit in to. We’ll breathe new life into them by donating it all to a local charity. After all, we’ve got two hands – one to help ourselves, and another to helps others!
7. Restart the beach bonfire. Nothing says summer like a bonfire at the beach. So, today we’ll be honoring this favorite tradition with a long walk on the beach and finishing it off with a bonfire…and maybe even some smores!
8. Remember to honor the sun. This holiday is all about the sun after all! So, to show our gratitude to the sun and the life it gives everything here on Earth, we’ll be practicing our Sun Salutations in an outdoor yoga class at sunset – and wearing our NEW Cell Renew Sunveil Complete OneTint SPF 17 when we’re enjoying the sun outside!
9. Relax. To close out the long summer day we’re going to take a book outside, enjoy the (hopefully) warm weather and just relax, breathe and get grateful.

How will you be celebrating the Summer Solstice? Tell us in the comments.

Sources: History.com, WikiHow, Mental Floss