New Moon & Winter Solstice Three-Day Fast

Endings, new beginnings & the magic of rituals,

Winter is not my season. I am a lot more content in high temperatures and soaking up the sun. But, in the last couple of years, I have learned to appreciate the nature of this season: the slowing down, the introspection, and the regeneration that comes from the slowing down. Because I am not a fan of cold weather, I have always dreaded – if not loathed – this time of year. It is only in the last two years that I have finally leaned into the energy of winter – outside as well as within me – instead of resisting this phase in the natural rhythm of life. Even though December is marked by cold weather – if you live in a part of the world where winters are cold – and the longest night of the year, it is also the time of the winter solstice, and with it, the return of the sun and the light. To mark this transition from one season to the next, I am fasting for three days (20th, 21st & 22nd of December). I have been fasting with the seasons for a few years now; and if I do not fast, I always take the time to welcome each season in one way or another. I love the energy of transitions: the shedding of the old to ease into the new.

Closing Chapters

Another year is coming to an end, another chapter in this book of life is closing. A fellow Aries girlfriend told me at the beginning of the year that 2025 was our year, whatever that meant. Ten days away from a new year, and I still don't know what that means :D. Although, I feel like I came into my own a lot more. I've always been comfortable with who I am, but these past few months, I have tapped into a part of myself that I always felt but never fully understood. 2025 was eventful and took me to very unexpected places, some of which were painful to walk through, although necessary. Endings always bring nostalgia and melancholy as we grieve what was. Yet, nothing really ends; things just evolve and change to match our own evolution – like seasons coming and going.

The Magic Of Rituals

That is what celebrating the changing of seasons through rituals has taught me. When I take the time to contemplate nature changing, transforming, and repeating its cycles, endings become moments to appreciate rather than mourn. For a long time, I associated rituals with religion. And indeed, rituals are part of every known religion and culture, because anything that is done with consistency is essentially a ritual. I've come to love the word ritual to describe my morning routine and fasting practice because both are done with intention, rather than being a series of actions done on automatic (routine). Each time I sit in the morning to breathe and meditate, something different comes up; sometimes I feel a clear shift within, while other times it is very subtle or even unperceived. Regardless of the intensity, every morning session, every fasting day builds upon the previous one to create lasting change. Every experience is different, even though they may look the same. That is the magic and the power of rituals: the conscious intention behind the action. The sun rises and sets every day, yet it generates awe every time, as if it were the first time, because there is something truly magical in watching nature unfold.

New Beginnings

Similarly, the moon goes through the same cycle every 28 days, but always under a different sky – the one visible to the naked eye, as well as the movement of the planets that surround us. Even though the latter is invisible to us, we feel it and are impacted by it (whether we are aware or not). When I tune to the cycles of the moon and observe the changing of seasons with ritualistic practices, I allow myself to begin again, not from the very beginning, but rather from a new perspective and hopefully with wisdom gained with each cycle and passing season.

Gratitude

Endings then become something to appreciate – after the necessary mourning time – and be thankful for; the experiences, the encounters, the lessons, and the blessings that came from the previous cycle, while knowing that many more are on their way. Those experiences and encounters will never be exactly the same, but they will be just as valuable and enriching.