The summer solstice has always been a quiet marker for me and a reminder to slow down, take a breath, and listen. I snapped this photo in my backyard, where this small corner offers just enough stillness to pull me out of the noise. The longest day of the year doesn’t demand anything flashy. The day is more about being present, about noticing how the light lingers, and feeling connected, corresponding to your body’s chakra, or the emotional or spiritual aspect of your life.
I’ve never needed much more than a bit of music, some shade, and being outdoors with time to reflect. This season tends to bring me back to center. I’m someone who’s constantly moving, planning, listening, but in summer, I try to pause just long enough to recognize where I’ve been and where I still want to go. It is the best time of year. How about you?
Sumer is icumen in
Here’s a song written in the 1200s celebrating summer's arrival. Written in Middle English, it’s one of the earliest examples of a musical round, or wheel, and it just sings with simple joy for life. The repetition of “cuccu,” the cuckoo bird, feels playful, like nature itself is calling for the season. Underneath the ancient language lies optimism. Crops are growing, animals thriving, and life is good. I love how something old can still feel this alive, this grounded in the simple fact that summer is celebrated. Even then, people looked to the skies and the trees, noticing the change of seasons and feeling a positive shift within themselves.
Sumer is icumen in
Lhude sing cuccu
Groweþ sed
and bloweþ med
and springþ þe wde nu
Sing cuccu
Awe bleteþ after lomb
lhouþ after calue cu
Bulluc sterteþ
bucke uerteþ
murie sing cuccu
Cuccu cuccu
Wel singes þu cuccu
ne swik þu nauer nu
Sing cuccu nu, Sing cuccu
Sing cuccu, Sing cuccu nu.
Playlist
Built for the solstice, this playlist leans into the long light of late June, when the days are endless and everything feels a little suspended. There’s a gentle warmth to the mix, with tracks that shimmer and linger without rushing. It’s not all sun-drenched or celebratory, with some songs carrying that quiet, reflective energy that comes when the sun finally dips and the sky holds onto just a little bit of that orange and pink behind the lazy clouds. Join me in gathering around the fire pit and celebrating the season. ☀️
Bouncing Around the Room
I celebrated the Summer Solstice by attending the opening night of the 2025 Phish summer tour in Manchester, New Hampshire, with 17,999 other people. I hadn’t seen them live since April 5, 1998. The band has matured, and they are better musicians today - I mean, who wouldn’t be after playing together for 40+ years? Each member of Phish is a master of their instrument, and they demonstrated that last night on stage. The entire show felt old-school, so for someone like me, who hadn’t seen them since the 1990s, I felt young, as if I knew the songs and the flow. However, there was one jam in the second set that had me floored. It reminded me of a Miles Davis fusion-era jam session, circa Bitches Brew, where they switched back and forth between keys, guitar, and bass riffs, going deeper and deeper, sounding like Miles Runs the Voodoo Down sans horn. What a way to celebrate the longest day of the year, right?
Until next time. Happy summer! Thank you once more for reading.
