After Solstice

The month of January
In Scandinavia
The sun rises lazily at eight
And again the sky
Is rosy with sunset
At three thirty
And yet I know
That the darkest, longest night
Has already passed
And even though I cannot see
The lengthening of days
As I cannot see
the invisible glide of the hour hand
Over the face of a clock,
I know that the Sun has returned
And Light is increasing
Soon will come the long days of summer
When night is only a passing shadow

History has a Solstice too
The Light has appeared in the East
Increasing in the darkest night
As inevitably as the earth
Draws closer to the Sun every summer
And the long promised dawn
Prepares an awakening
Silently, quietly…

January 1999, Ydrefors Sweden, Training Center