The Invitation Every year, the holidays arrive like a tidal wave of light, sugar, noise, and obligation. We sprint toward December with full calendars and empty bodies, mistaking exhaustion for joy. But what if we stopped running? What if we treated this descent into darkness not as something to escape—but as an initiation into deeper presence? Across cultures, the season before solstice was never meant for indulgence. It was a time to prepare: to simplify, to fast, to clear space for renewal. Early Christians observed St. Martin’s Lent, a six‑week fast leading up to Christmas. The Eastern Orthodox Nativity Fast still invites abstinence from meat, dairy, and excess beginning mid‑November. In Asia, Ōsōji, the great year‑end cleaning, purifies homes before the New Year. In China and India, winter rituals emphasize conservation—less outward energy, more inward cultivation. The body already knows this rhythm. The nervous system craves it. It’s our culture that forgot. Read more on Substack When would be a good time for a check in? Feel free to suggest other days/times.