5 Ways the Summer Solstice Could Kick-Start the Rest of Your Year

Astrologically speaking, now is an excellent time to turbocharge the rest of 2018.The summer solstice marks the longest day of the year, and we’re feeling inspired to usher in the new season. Whether you believe you’re one of the Charmed Ones or you’re just excited that it’s officially beach season, the summer solstice has more impact on your life than you would think.

Technically, the summer solstice occurs when the Earth’s axis is most greatly inclined toward the sun, making it the longest day of the year. In England, members of the Druid and Pagan communities still travel to Stonehenge to perform rituals there in line with the summer solstice.

When it comes to connecting to our most spiritual selves, what does the summer solstice actually mean for our everyday lives? Well, the occasion has special significance.

1. The solstice kicks off Cancer season.

According to the AstroTwins, astrologers to the stars, the solstice kicks off Cancer season. “At the solstice, the sun appears to pass directly over the Tropic of Cancer,” they wrote on their website, Astrostyle. “This is the moment when astrologers say that the sun has ‘entered’ Cancer, meaning that it’s now traveling through the part of the zodiac band represented by Cancer.”

Lasting 30 days, Cancer season means we will start to feel the astrological energy of the zodiac sign, Cancer. As a result, we may all become more sensitive, emotional, and comforting towards each other. Symbolized by a crab, Cancers are homebodies, so this season marks the perfect time to spruce up your abode. Maybe that itch you have to redecorate was the summer solstice after all? Or maybe it’s just because home decor is all so pretty.

2. You’ll be ushering in feminine energy.

The word solstice is derived from sol (sun) and sister (standing still), and so the summer solstice got its name because the sun appears to stop in time. While this is just a three-day-long illusion, it has significant meaning in astrology.

With the sun associated with masculinity, and the Cancer zodiac sign representing femininity, the summer solstice appears to show the sun stopping to make way for a new solar cycle. Essentially, masculine energy is diminished while feminine energy is ushered in for a Cancer season.

So, what does this mean for our lives? Since femininity and masculinity are social constructs, it seems archaic to insinuate we should all be embracing our femininity as if it somehow defines our self-worth. However, it is a good time for self-reflection, to think about the different qualities we possess and how we view them.

Femininity has a bad reputation; it’s either associated with weakness or pushed upon women as something they should be. Neither of those things are right. That said, just as we shouldn’t feel the need to be overly polite or docile to appear feminine and less threatening to men, we shouldn’t necessarily bash feminine qualities like being amiable just because they have historically been taken advantage of by the power hungry.

Perhaps, in the current climate of exposing gender inequality in the workplace, you’ve been considering how to best behave to address the imbalance? Well, this season is the perfect time to reflect on that.

3. It’s a time to create balance in your life.

Just as we’re ushering in new energy with Cancer season, the summer solstice is a spiritual checkpoint that marks the middle of the year. That means it’s a time for readdressing your priorities and ensuring you’re giving equal time to each goal your setting. Have you stopped seeing your girlfriends? Have you been slacking at work?

Basically, it’s time to reorganize our lives and realize we’re already half way through 2018. Whether that means writing down your goals and having a visual guide to success or just taking a moment to consider whether you’re fully reaching your potential, self-reflection is key.

4. It’s an opportunity to start a new endeavor.

The start of a new season means reinvigorated energy to achieve the goals we set out at the start of the year. “It’s not easy to focus when we’re rapidly expanding our awareness [and] being provoked by our life circumstances falling and piling into our life, causing a lot of change to happen quickly,” says Victor Oddo, a life coach who helps people find their spiritual awakening, “It’s very easy to get swept away with the chaotic current of life, but it’s important to stay focused — not wait for things to settle down before we continue to do what we want to do in life.”

That new job you wanted? Apply for it. The new book you’ve been meaning to read? Log off Facebook and you may find you have time to actually finish it.

5. It’s a time to be bold.

This season of new energy is a time to readdress our goals and focus on ourselves. Guilt is a very real problem we all deal with. Whether we’re not spending enough time on the right priority, not making enough time for ourselves, or not achieving our goals fast enough, we feel guilty.

Now is the time to stop worrying about whether we’re doing it right, and just forge ahead with what we want. Have you got a date you’ve been putting off? Call him up and pick a time. Do you want to make a career jump you’re worried you’re not ready for? Take the plunge.

If the summer solstice tells us anything, it’s that there’s no time to waste limiting ourselves out of fear or guilt. We have more daylight than ever to get things done, which means you have plenty of time to take out of your normal routine to think boundlessly about what you want and how to get it.