This weekend, people will gather to recognize the passing of the seasons, while reflecting on Planet Earth.
The Iowa City Parks and Recreation Department will sponsor this year’s Winter Solstice Festival of Lights event from 3 to 5 p.m. on Saturday at the Robert A. Lee Community Recreation Centre, 220 S. Gilbert St.
Michael Moore, a University of Iowa associate professor of history, said the solstice was a moment of rebirth for pre-Christian civilizations — the earliest sign that spring was coming and that the sunlight would return.
“The solstice represented a moment when the Earth was at its darkest and coldest,” he said. “There was a fear that the world might not come back to life, but the moment of the solstice showed that the turning point had come, and slowly the world and all its creatures would come back to life.”
Joyce Carroll, program supervisor, said this years event is an opportunity for people to come together with their family and friends to engage in activities that should nurture their spirit and honor the Sun’s light.
In its second year, the event is organized by volunteers from the Iowa City Recreation Division.
“We hope to continue the event for years to come,” Carroll said. “It’s a good event to run annually because this is a great time to celebrate community and to learn more about our world and how we affect it.”
Carroll said the Parks and Recreation Department hopes the community would join together, regardless of their backgrounds and belief systems, to connect with nature and experience some kind of personal reflection. Last year’s event saw a turnout of more than 150 people.
Nancy Pope, another volunteer for the event, said this year would have more opportunities to get involved.
“We’ve also added a community art project,” she said. “We intentionally strove to have activities that were somewhat different from last year.”
Pope said this year’s event would include a presentation on the science behind the solstice by Ted Neal, a UI clinical instructor in science education.
Neal said he will use flashlights and globes to talk about what a solstice is and why it occurs and also to hopefully remove misconceptions related to the seasons.
“We’re going to do a little demonstration and modeling on how the Earth works,” he said. “I hope they [people] will wrestle the misconceptions.”
Among a few of the day’s activities include creating musical shakers and cinnamon bells so that participants canb have their own music makers for celebrating the polstice, Pope said. Additionally, other events include crafting twig stars and herbal sprigs, which will be made out of natural materials in recognition of the Earth’s star, the Sun.
Iowa natives the Yahoo Drummers will also perform at the festival. The members play percussions from all over the world and enjoy experimenting with unusual instruments.
Carroll said people should go to the event to join others in celebrating the Sun and all it does for humanity and to celebrate the coming of longer days and shorter nights.