The winter solstice is a big day on my calendar. So much of what Christmas has become is really a celebration of the fact that the darkest day of the year has been reached, and that more light is coming, despite the days continuing to grow colder. The evergreens in our homes, the lights on the trees, and the candles and their atmospheric wonder help us cope with the mugging by the dark and the cold. I love it and I love that the days slowly get longer. Indeed, it is an element of the winter and spring that I most appreciate.

Here are some beautiful poems about winter.

Mary Oliver’s Snowy Night

Susan Cooper’s Shortest Day

Wendell Berry’s To Know The Dark

And some music…