After the daily shortening of the hours of daylight I am glad that today is the day of the Winter Solstice, the shortest day and the longest night of the year. I have always operated best under solar power and am ready to celebrate the rebirth of light!
It seems hard to believe that I took the photo above at Peavey Plaza in downtown Minneapolis shortly after yesterday's 4:34 pm sunset. No wonder we celebrate this season with brightly colored lights, we have so many hours to enjoy them!
The term solstice means 'sun stands still'. It signifies that today the movement of the sun appears to stop shortening the days…and tomorrow the days will start to lengthen again. Of course this has nothing to do with the movement of the sun, but is caused by the rotation of the earth on its tilted axis as it circles the sun. Our Northern Hemisphere has been tilted toward the sun since the summer solstice last June 21, and now the sun appears lowest and furthest away as the Southern Hemisphere prepares to enjoy that privilege.
Winter Solstice has been celebrated in cultures and religions throughout the world since ancient times. The start of the solar year, it is a celebration of new beginnings and the powerful transition from darkness to light after the longest night of the year. It was known as Yule in old Europe…from the Norse 'Jul', meaning wheel.
Today signifies the start of winter in our part of the world. It may be the shortest day with only about 9 hours of sunlight, but it isn't likely to be the coldest day…that typically comes 4-6 weeks later, just as the hottest days typically come after the start of summer on June 21, the longest day of the year (with about 15 hours of daylight!).
Even though the days will now start getting longer again I wouldn't recommend waiting for evening light and warmer weather to look for a home if you are planning to buy. You must decide on a home by the end of April to take advantage of the home buyer tax credits…$8,000 for first-time homebuyers and $6,500 for qualifying repeat buyers!
Sharlene Hensrud, RE/MAX Results - Email – HomesMSP.com
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