I’m sure you’ve noticed that the days are getting longer. Well, maybe not; the change is only by seconds so far. So probably you’re still grumpy about how it gets dark before you’ve even finished work, and then how it’s still dark when you get up and your dog wants to go for a morning walk.
Yeah, we’re not yet out of the dark time of the year. And beyond the literal darkness, it’s also a dark season emotionally for a lot of us. For people who care about the forward progress of our democracy, about fairness and equity for all Americans, the stability of the world order, or even something as fundamental as competence in government – all those things – the days since the re-election of Donald Trump have been pretty dark. A lot of people tell me they can’t even pay much attention to the news anymore – that it’s too upsetting, one day after another.
But at least when it comes to daylight, things are looking up. Saturday was the winter solstice, the shortest day of the year, which means that we are now gradually moving toward the light. And here we are, poised for Christmas Eve, which always seems to be a moment when things look brighter. Consider the classic Christmas carol, “Silent Night,” with lyrics that say, “All is calm, all is bright.” That’s the hope – though, really, how can a night be bright?
Or, more to the point just now: Where’s the light in all this darkness? Well, I’ll tell you. But it starts with understanding the solstice.
Because the earth’s North Pole tilts about 23 degrees away from the sun, the winter solstice occurs at the moment when the Arctic Circle is furthest away from the sun. And because we’re pretty far north compared to the rest of the U.S.A., this affects us a lot: Around here on Saturday, the day of the solstice, we got just 9 hours and 2 minutes of daylight – which seems a bit unfair, when you consider that down around Mar-a-Lago, Donald Trump got about an hour and a half more daylight than we did. Trump’s always blaming Democrats in the Northeast for the population shift to the Sun Belt, but I’d say the sunlight is a bigger factor. People like the light.
Despite the darkness, the solstice has been a moment for awe and celebration as far back as the Stone Age. In fact, it was apparently with the solstice in mind that people built Stonehenge over a 1500-year period starting in 3100 B.C. Later, in ancient Europe, the solstice was viewed as the death and rebirth of the sun, a time to worship the Sun God. Ancient Romans turned this into a weeklong celebration, Saturnalia, and some historians say that’s why early Christians decided to celebrate the birth of Jesus right around this time of the year. That is, people were already accustomed to celebrating, so it was a sensible appropriation by a religion that wanted to offer a message of hope.
But as we think about this history, consider, too, why moments of darkness aren’t altogether so bad.
On a personal level, darkness and adversity present an opportunity for us to experience growth and resilience. That is, challenges press us to develop new skills and perspectives, to accumulate inner strength. And they help us appreciate the more positive aspects of our lives. When we have experienced darkness – when hardship has occupied our attention – we tend to more deeply value the good times that follow.
Adversity, then, is a catalyst for positive change. In tough moments, we may re-evaluate our priorities, and make some necessary adjustments. We get stronger.
Which brings me to this precarious moment, as we await Donald Trump’s return to power.
Yes, I have little doubt that we are entering a dark phase for America. There are almost sure to be setbacks to the limited progress we have made in addressing climate change and economic injustice; we’re already experiencing pushback on efforts to make empathy a characteristic of public life, such as in the recognition of the rights of LGBTQ Americans and people of color; the health of our families and neighbors could well be imperiled by hostility to science and learning. Yes – I do think a dark time awaits.
But it will not last. If we as a society confront this adversity with awareness, we can emerge stronger. We’ll develop a political movement that can counter Trumpism; we will use the hardship to clarify our priorities. Dormant plants spring to life; so can slow-flowing social currents become a torrent. If we are resilient – and do not cower in fear of the darkness, but fight it – we can emerge into a brighter world.
The winter solstice has just passed; the political solstice remains ahead. But at this time of the year, as we are just beginning to emerge from the darkest of days, it is good to remember that this is not how things end. It’s how we go on to a new beginning. I wish all of you a season of hope.
Rex Smith, the co-host of The Media Project on WAMC, is the former editor of the Times Union of Albany and The Record in Troy. His weekly digital report, The Upstate American, is published by Substack.
The views expressed by commentators are solely those of the authors. They do not necessarily reflect the views of this station or its management.