The Summer Solstice occurs on June 21 in the Northern Hemisphere this year. It is the longest day of the year and the shortest night. Summer finally begins here in the Midwest, both meteorologically — with the warming of the air and the increasing occurrence of sunny days – and socially — with the end of the school year. Which is why I don’t call the day “Midsummer” — “Midsummer”, for me, falls after Lughnasadh in early August. The summer solstice is the twin to the winter solstice which falls around December 21. The day is called “Litha” by many Pagans. “Litha” is the name given to the summer inter-calendary period by the Anglo-Saxons, just as “Yule” is the name they gave to the winter inter-calendary period — which is where we get the name Yule for the Christmas-tide…

read more : “Darkness Leaping Out of Light”: The Summer Solstice from a different angle.