You don’t need a calendar date circled and underlined twice to recognize that the changing of the seasons is upon us. We are inching closer to Summer Solstice - June 21st - the day that we are gifted 15 hours of daylight in Central Illinois.
This annual rhythm has been recognized in celebrations across the world for thousands of years. Before modern calendars existed, communities across Europe watched the sun and created unique festivals and gatherings to welcome this shift.
Today we look at present-day rituals and traditions for you to take inspiration from and try at home here in Bloomington-Normal - no plane ticket required. You may end up adding your own family’s twist and repeating it for years to come making it a new tradition to pause and acknowledge this kinetic time of year.
🇸🇪 Sweden - Midsommar
You may already be familiar with Sweden’s beloved holiday of Midsommar. Families and friends get together in large outdoor gatherings with food and merriment. There are dances around maypoles and people young and old take time to carefully create their midsommarkrans (flower crowns) for the celebration.
🏠 You could invite neighbors over for a special lunch (pickled herring not required) or gather wildflowers and create flower crowns for everyone to try on and see how long they survive while running around outside.
🇮🇹 Italy - Festa di San Giovanni
On June 23rd families in central Italy gather herbs and flower petals to place in a bowl of water outside overnight creating acqua di San Giovanni (St. John’s Water). It is thought that this night imparts something special into the water and in the morning people will wash their hands and face with the enriched acqua for good luck.
🏠 At home you can take a passeggiata (stroll) and have your littles pick out leaves and petals that are perfectly placed at their level and make your own acqua di San Giovanni.
🇱🇻 Latvia - Jāņi
One of the largest celebrations in Latvia is around the Summer Solstice with ancient roots and long lived traditions - many people retreat to the countryside to gather together and eat and celebrate until sunrise with dancing and large bonfires. Ancient folklore inspires the tradition of searching for the mythical ‘fern flower’ that is said to only bloom on these special nights. Families go on walks in the forest to see if they can find this fabled plant in hopes it brings them good fortune.
🏠 Bring the family to wander in one of our local forest preserves like Hidden Creek Nature Sanctuary or just around the neighborhood and see if anyone thinks they’ve found the magical botanical wonder, the fern flower.
🇬🇷 Greece - Agios Ioannis Klidonas
A bright festival held on June 23rd on the Greek isles takes on ancient traditions of jumping over bonfires and storytelling to acknowledge this magnetic time of year. Envision young children holding the hands of their grandmothers jumping over the flames in hopes of prosperity and leaving negativity behind.
🏠 A massive backyard bonfire is likely not in your future, but instead taking the spirit of renewal and cleansing, your family can write down individual wishes for the days ahead and things they’d like to leave behind and burn them or throw them away to be carried off to fruition.
Give one of these a try with your family and embrace the changing of the daylight and the summer season that we’ve all been waiting for! No need to wait for a trip of a lifetime, each celebration may be different in size and shape, but the universal truth of it all is that it's time together that counts - the rest is just the details.
Casey Kratz is the founder of My Little Mondo, a newsletter that helps families bring language, culture, and traditions from around the world into everyday life. Sign up at MyLittleMondo.com.
