Our son turned four today.  Our “baby” is a little boy!

After a day hanging with grandma and grandpa, blowing out the candles, opening presents and tucking my little superhero into bed, I sat down on the couch, exhausted but content, to read a few emails.  My friend Judy forwarded an email to me saying that today is Candlemas, a cross-quarter holy-day, the power point between Winter Solstice and Spring Equinox.  I had no idea.  The email read:

“Candlemas, This is the night in the northern hemisphere when the Goddess (Bridgid for those of us with Irish ancestry) passes and touches us with her healing vibes. It’s a good night to hang a silk scarf out the window (to catch those vibes) and to open yourself to ritual and dreaming. Candlemas is known for the “quickening” energy that awakens our desire for spring. The light is getting stronger, and we can imagine that the warmth of the sun will grace us once again.” (Vicki Noble).

I looked into Candlemas.  In my Catholic world, Candlemas isn’t talked about much.  But it is the day that we celebrate Jesus being presented to the temple, announcing again that he is the Light of the World.  We celebrate with lighting candles.  It is a celebration of hope.  It’s a reminder that WE are to be the light in the world.

Candlemas.  My son was born on Candlemas.

When I read this, I thought, “How fitting that our son was born on this ‘power point’ between Winter and Spring Equinox!” No matter what the groundhog sees today, the days are getting longer and light is getting stronger. Spring will be birthed. Light is coming. There is hope.

That is our son. He is light…fire and passion. He embodies that bold energy of desire…the tenacious energy of spring bursting forth. He doesn’t hide his light – when he walks onto the playground, into a friend’s house, or into a group, he walks in with this vibe of  “We’re all welcome here! Come join in!”

My son’s presence in my life has shed light on places within me that I didn’t even know I hid in the darkness – places I’d rather not look. That’s parenthood!  It brings up our “stuff!”  But light is always more tenacious than dark.  One little ray of light changes a room of darkness.  My son’s tenacity, light, fire, passion, and power are awakening within me my own boldness and passion.

I think about all our children. No matter your religion or creed, our children are the light in this world.  They will be the light for the next generation.  I believe our youth are “changing things up” and they will be the leaders of a revolution of compassion and kindness to create a more unified, peaceful world.

And so I believe that our role as parents to these young ones is about nurturing their light.

Can we stress less about high test scores and focus more on talking with our children?

Can we pause to see the light in our children?

Can we talk to and regard our children in a ways that their light radiates over their whole bodies – from the brightness of their eyes to the warmth of their hugs?

I believe our job as parents is to create the space for our children to embrace their light and have the boldness to share it with the world…for the healing, happiness, and health of our world.

Let’s let our children’s light shine in our everyday lives.