Poems in Appreciation of the Beauty of Litha

Litha – or as most people know it, the summer solstice – is soon approaching on Sunday the 21st. It’s the longest day of the year, when we celebrate the sun and abundance of life, as well as our inner light, vitality, and creativity. It teaches us to draw in our energy for the upcoming season, as the days slowly begin to shorten. The solstice is also a time when we should appreciate the beauty around us, as flowers bloom and butterflies futter about.

For centuries, poets have captured these ideas to celebrate the abundance, warmth, and raw power of the natural world. Here are a few of my favorite poems that encompass the feelings of Litha:

“Fireflies in the Garden” by Robert Frost

Here come real stars to fill the upper skies,

And here on earth come emulating flies,

That though they never equal stars in size,

(And they were never really stars at heart)

Achieve at times a very star-like start.

Only, of course, they can't sustain the part.

While it seems that Frost was writing about the fleeting moments when you can see fireflies on summer nights, nowadays, the final line of the poem also speaks to the dwindling numbers of fireflies. When they are sadly decreasing every year, we need to take the time to appreciate their magnificence while we can.

“Moonlight, Summer Moonlight” by Emily Jane Brontë

’Tis moonlight, summer moonlight,

All soft and still and fair;

The solemn hour of midnight

Breathes sweet thoughts everywhere,

But most where trees are sending

Their breezy boughs on high,

Or stooping low are lending

A shelter from the sky.

And there in those wild bowers

A lovely form is laid;

Green grass and dew-steeped flowers

Wave gently round her head.

In this poem, Brontë personifies nature into a tranquil haven. By including a stationary, resting figure at the end of the poem, she brings the reader’s focus to how humans and their environments can live in harmony.

“Eagle Poem” by Joy Harjo

To pray you open your whole self

To sky, to earth, to sun, to moon

To one whole voice that is you.

And know there is more

That you can’t see, can’t hear;

Can’t know except in moments

Steadily growing, and in languages

That aren’t always sound but other

Circles of motion.

Like eagle that Sunday morning

Over Salt River. Circled in blue sky

In wind, swept our hearts clean

With sacred wings.

We see you, see ourselves and know

That we must take the utmost care

And kindness in all things.

Breathe in, knowing we are made of

All this, and breathe, knowing

We are truly blessed because we

Were born, and die soon within a

True circle of motion,

Like eagle rounding out the morning

Inside us.

We pray that it will be done

In beauty.

In beauty.

This poem reminds us that everything in nature is cyclical: life and death, inhaling and exhaling, sowing and reaping. The summer solstice symbolizes the peak of sunlight: the days leading up to it were steadily growing longer, but the days following will slowly shorten. The solstice reminds us that even at the absolute height of abundance, the subtle shift toward darkness and introspection has already begun. The natural world thrives on this continuous rhythm, where every ending carries the seed of a new beginning.

Image source: https://www.cypresscreekcottages.com/best-time-to-see-wildflowers-in-texas-hill-country/