For those who don’t follow these things, a total eclipse of the moon happened exactly on the day of the winter solstice this year, yesterday. It was also a full moon. The last time a total eclipse happened on the winter solstice was 456 years ago. This is a big time.

Major shifts are observable in human psyche and affairs during and after eclipses. The shadowing of the light brings up hidden things – old ideas, insecurities, misperceptions, behaviors, issues for review. If well-utilized, this can be a time of clearing out notions and things no longer needed.

I am feeling the power of yesterday’s eclipse in a number of ways. Today I can’t help but think of the story that is at the core of this holiday, the birth of Jesus in a manger because there was no room in the inn. What a clearing out of lofty expectations for how things should go that tale tells! So often we think that if things aren’t going “right” then something must be “wrong.” And that we must be doing something wrong if things aren’t going as planned or hoped for.

Any such anxieties are due for clearing out and becoming eclipsed by new attitudes of trust and gratitude at a time like this. What if those who gave birth to Jesus had thought everything went wrong? The same spark of Christ light is in every atom in creation. What if we stood back and adored it for what it is, no matter how or where it is birthed?

The story at the heart of Christmas  is a simple one even as it seems a deep mystery. It is clear as a bell and yet confounds us. I hope this eclipse darkens old notions about it and brings new ones to light.