Every season has its gifts and some we relate to more readily than others. I’ve always been a spring kinda girl. I love beginnings. I love the fresh start and the fresh air. I love the promise of tulips peeking through the earth and saying hi. I love open windows and singing birds. I love clearing away winter’s debris and feeling new again.
But winter? Winter I find harder to love. It’s cold. It’s dark. It lasts forever. And emotionally, it’s the down note, the dark side, the turning in and dialing down. Living in it right now highlights the time in my life too, a time when for the past long while it has felt like things were moving and shifting deep down in the earth, things I couldn’t do anything about, things I had to wait to see and to understand.
Waiting.
That’s a big part of winter.
I’m not a fan of waiting. I like to dive in. I like to plan the next adventure. I want to taste the next thing. I’m a doer, a driver. When there’s a lull, I look to see where I can pick up the pace. But sometimes, that’s not what’s needed. At all. There’s wisdom in winter.
Fighting the seasons – of the year and of your life – simply doesn’t work. When you resist the tide, all that happens is you get tired.
Winter arrives in her own time and she stays as long as she damn well pleases. In fact, when I think about her like that, I like her more. I love a strong woman who knows her own mind!
And when I stop for a moment, I remember that I like turning in. I love quiet time with a book or my journal and a nice cup of tea. I love having a lazy breakfast with my honey or curling up under a big comforter and sneaking in extra sleep. I love stopping by the pub on a cold, snowy day and sitting by the fire. I love chunky big scarves and rich, hearty soups. I love being gentle with myself and taking time to breathe.
Maybe wintering isn’t so bad after all.
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{ 5 comments… read them below or add one }
I *love* this! Thank you:)
What speaks loudest to me today is: to find what I love about each season and invest in *that*. When I think of winter: I love the cold, crisp air; I love how the colors are heightened when I focus on them; I love that sometimes I have the entire beach to myself or that the only others that are there are because they very much want to be so.
And, I may practice such gratitude with any external season or cycle in my life. When I embrace what is natural– rather than resist because of discomfort– I allow my heart to open that much further:)
Oh I love this! I have lamented winter for years–since moving to the east coast from TX…I am learning to adjust. I am understanding the dormancy–dormancy in our lives, and as an important part of all processes. Creativity and its cycles~
My birthday is in January and my mom’s birthday in February. I always look forward to Winter because of our birthdays. Also, it’s a time when the sun is returning. Every day the days get longer..and the earth is sleeping about ready to burst into Spring. I feel Winter is full of promise and renewal about to come.
I look at Wintering as a beautiful time. I’m happy to know you can embrace this season, too. Hopefully others can follow in your example.
Beautiful Jamie and so very true! I feel the same way about winter when it comes to the length, the darkness but I seem to have made peace with it this year. It may be temporary but turning in, can be wonderful. I think we both need a break and Winter has decided, Ridler ladies, it’s time to rest a bit.
Thank you, everyone. i love hearing our different takes on winter – when it’s been joyful, when it’s been hard. There’s something beautiful about knowing that we all go through these seasons – geographically, personally – and that makes it feel like we’re in it together.
I’ll put the kettle on.