Perhaps these darker days and lengthening nights
are not here to burden you,
But to gently call you inward.

A sacred invitation to retreat,
to rest beneath the hush of the world,
to loosen your grip and finally exhale.

They whisper: step away now.
Leave the noise, the stories, the dramas
that have tugged at your spirit.
Breathe,

You have been holding the threads together
through all the turning months,
carrying more than anyone ever knew.
You are here now,
standing close to the threshold.
Before you cross into the unknown
of a newborn year,
pause at this quiet gate.
Sit with yourself.

Let your soul catch up with your steps.
This year will never circle back again.
Its moments have already folded into eternity.

You rushed through some of them,
survived others,
and grew in ways you may not yet see.
So linger here a little longer.
Listen to what this year taught you

in silence, in loss, in grace.
Another year is already breathing toward you,
carrying its own lessons, its own veils and unveilings.
But for now, remain here
in this sacred pause.

Honor every tear, every prayer,
every mountain you climbed while trembling.
Celebrate yourself quietly.
Not with noise, but with reverence.
Savor the memories etched into your becoming,
The strength you discovered when you thought you had none.

Bless yourself for enduring, for awakening,
for making it through another cycle of becoming.
You are still here.
And that, too, is holy.