"Deep into that darkness peering, long I stood there, wondering, fearing, doubting..."
--Edgar Alan Poe

For all creatures of the earth, nothing is as fundamental as daylight, which blooms new memories and sheds light on life itself. The darkness can be numbing; isolation warps the mind.

On the lip of holiday celebrations and year-end resolutions, the tilt of the earth 23.5 degrees from the sun, summons the Winter Solstice when the sun is lowest in the sky, reflecting a scant nine hours and 32 minutes of daylight--the shortest day of the year, a time of inner reflection for all of us.

The sun's purposeful journey across the sky, from the shortest day to the longest day, has been measured since early time, and manifested in such mystic monuments as Stonehenge in England and Machu Picchu in Peru.