Welcome to the Daily Quote – a podcast designed to kickstart your day in a positive way. I'm Andrew McGivern for December 21st.Today is Winter Solstice – the longest night and shortest day of the year in the Northern Hemisphere.For thousands of years, humans have marked this astronomical event. Ancient peoples built monuments aligned to the solstice sun – Stonehenge, Newgrange, Machu Picchu. They understood something profound: today marks a turning point. After tonight, each day grows longer. Light returns.Winter Solstice reminds us that darkness isn't permanent. It peaks, then recedes. The sun reaches its lowest point in the sky, then begins its climb back. Starting tomorrow, we gain seconds, then minutes of daylight. Slowly but inevitably, light wins.Victor Hugo captured the promise of the solstice when he wrote:

"Even the darkest night will end, and the sun will rise."Hugo's words aren't just poetic. They're physical truth.No matter how dark it gets, morning comes. The earth keeps spinning. The sun keeps rising. This isn't hope or optimism – it's astronomy. It's certainty.The solstice teaches us this lesson in real time. Tonight is literally the darkest night of the year. Maximum darkness. Peak cold and shadow. And yet, embedded in this darkest moment is the seed of return. Tomorrow, light begins growing again.That's the pattern in nature and in life. The darkest moment often precedes the turn. When things feel most hopeless, when winter feels endless, that's often exactly when light begins its return.Hugo understood that darkness is never the end of the story. It's just a chapter. Night gives way to dawn. Winter gives way to spring. The turn always comes.Today, honor the turning. Notice that after tonight, days grow longer. Light returns.If you're in a dark season, remember the solstice pattern. Darkness peaks, then recedes. The turn is coming, even if you can't see it yet.Tomorrow, watch the sunrise. Know that you're witnessing the return of light. Not just today, but every day from now until summer.Because Hugo was right. The darkest night will end. The sun will rise. That's not hope. That's certainty. That's solstice.That's going to do it for today. I'm Andrew McGivern signing off for now but I'll be back tomorrow. Same Pod time, same Pod Station - with another Daily Quote.