Fi Phillips

Today is the summer solstice in the northern hemisphere, the longest day of the year - a time for standing still (as the sun appears to) to take stock and for celebrating the warmth and joy in our lives. It's a day that is fertile with the optimism of summer days, and nights. What is it about summer that brings out the best in us? Even on a muggy, cloudy day like it is here, we throw open the windows, bare our legs and look up. Perhaps the vibrancy of colour makes us look around and outside of ourselves. Ideally, the warmer temperatures should cause us to unfurl from our winter wrappings, although British summers can rarely be relied upon for a multitude of sunny days. Maybe it's the smell of freshly mown grass or suntan lotion (which we British stoically bring out from around April each year, regardless of the weather). It could be all of these things and more, but summer definitely brings on a change in our outlook. Life can be a treadmill, not necessarily an unpleasant...

This is supposed to be the day when we throw off our winter layers, lash on the sun tan lotion and open our arms to the embrace of summer. What happened? I'm getting wet. My sun tan lotion is being washed away and  the puddle I've found myself standing in is seeping through my flip flops. Still, it isn't so bad, I suppose. I can still celebrate the sun. I'll just do it from the dry safety of my sofa. The summer solstice has always been about one thing for me - balance. It marks the balance between day and night (both the same length on this date before the nights begin to lengthen again). It reminds me to question my own life balance, be that work and home balance, me-time and them-time balance or even my nutritional balance. What about you? Is your life gracefully balanced or teetering on the edge? Happy Summer Solstice, however you spend it. May the sun always shine in your life and the fire remain bright in your hearth.

Today is the longest day of the year, the summer solstice, midsummer day, otherwise known as Litha, when the sun is at its highest and seems to stand still. In the past (and still nowadays at stone circles such as Stonehenge and the one at Avebury), revellers would stay up all night on Midsummer Eve waiting for the sun to rise. There would be bonfires and fire lit processions and celebrations of the sun's power. To me, this day is a time to stand still (like the sun seems to) and take stock of the good things in my life. Look around you. Enjoy the day, sun or rain. Wish well to your friends (and maybe those who aren't your friends too). If you can, share the day with those whom you love and have fun.