I’ve been getting a one-of-a-kind holiday gift every day. I received a gift of wisdom from Nature yesterday, a gift of valuable role-playing game lessons from my daughters the day before, and a gift of awareness that Life is a constant dance between the opposite cyclical phases. Of course, there is that de-cluttered, clean master bathroom from “Cleaning Fairy” who sprinkled magic dust of inspiration on my crown.

Today’s gift was a gorgeous sunny day with the blue sky and the amazing patterns of fluffy white cloud high up in the atmosphere, accentuating the eggshell blue luminescence that I love so much! Charles read the weather report yesterday and told me that the weather would be dismal today, so it was a surprise gift of the winter solstice to see the sun brightly shining high and triumphantly. I love the sun! I was a bit intimidated by the frost on the ground earlier in the day when the outside temperature barely reached 29 degrees Fahrenheit, but Charles was determined to get a family walk into our schedule today in case the weather doesn’t hold up tomorrow.

“Wise man,” I thought to myself although I gave him a hard time for pushing us out of our warm house. I was happy that someone else in the family insisted and led us outdoors for a change. I was also motivated to get some vitamin D absorbed into my body since I was beginning to wonder whether my lapse in taking my prescribed vitamin D was causing my fatigue and low energy. My doctor gave me a prescription for super strength vitamin D in early September, but I took her recommendation lightly and haven’t gotten around to it. We finally picked them up from the pharmacy yesterday. I’m curious to see if the giant supplement pills will make a difference in my energy level.

As for the solar power, I knew for sure it would lift up my body, mind and spirit. I held my arms high up toward the sun, and closed my eyes. The warm sun rays magically enveloped my entire body, head to toe, and I was immediately transported into “heaven”! Ah, the power of sun, how I adore thee! Charles imitated me and affirmed how wonderful the sunshine felt on his body while the girls were collecting frost from a nearby picnic table in the park where we were walking, and showing me how long they could make the frost last on their gloved palms.

The wonder of Nature in children’s eyes was a bonus gift for me as I joined them in their joyful exploration. These were precious moments – even though they may not be particularly spectacular—because they made memories in my heart. My daughters’ innocent, joyful, and rich experience in appreciating Nature’s wonder, and my taking part in their experience, was priceless and timeless. Also, my ability to be fully present with them, to catch their delight in that very moment when the sunlight was glistening on the icy frost, warmed me up as much as the sunbeams pouring on my crown and back.

What a perfect memory for this year’s winter solstice! It is especially meaningful for me as it resonates symbolically with my DEATH and REBIRTH: my old way of being, working and living as a corporate employee has come to an end as in death. No more of that old life. And as I shift into my new way of being, working and living as, what feels intuitively to me as a “life artist,” I am also experiencing rebirth into the next phase of my life. As Charles wrote about his title, “Ambassador of Play” in his post yesterday, the inspiration for his title came to him a while ago intuitively. I sense that more clarity around my gravitational pull toward “life artistry” will emerge in time as “Ambassador of Play” did for Charles.

Although Charles and I jumped into this Soul Play Family 365 Experiment the day after I left Microsoft, I realize that these phases don’t interlock side-by-side as clearly and certainly as I’d like to compartmentalize them in my mind. It feels as though there is a passageway of uncertain length and terrain connecting the death phase with the rebirth phase. I intuit that I am finding my next steps in what feels like a long, dark, unknown corridor, not unlike the long, dark, unknown winter night we are experiencing tonight.

What is curious to me though is this faith I have: just like the spring follows the winter, and the days get longer after the winter solstice, I know with certainty that I am guided and that I am not alone even in the darkest, coldest, and longest winter night. This faith must have been the catalyst for me to accept “death” when I went through MyCrownShift: the faith that no matter what, Life loves me exactly the way I am; therefore, my job is to shine my light and make it brighter.

May the light of your own soul brighten the longest night of the year as we travel from this winter solstice to our next milestone of the Life’s cycle!