(This is an old picture that I just ran across. It has nothing to do with this post, but I thought it was cool. The reflection of the sun on the window made it look like I was on a different planet.)
Based on my previous whining, it's probably hard to believe, but I think I have secretly been longing for winter. After a hectic holiday, many people talk about the bitter, gray cold of the winter slump, but do you ever get the feeling that winter is intentional?
Once the crazy hustle and bustle, over-indulgence, and over-extension of the holidays are over, don't you need a time of abstinence, when you don't have so many temptations or obligations? This is a time when nature seems to close up shop and the dreary weather encourages you to snuggle in and recover and reflect. It kinds feels like we are given this time to finish up and put away all the stuff from last year so we can start the new year off fresh. It seems like it's a time for acknowledging and accepting what is and listening as nature tells us to “slow down.”
Nature minimizes the distractions for us. We're being not only invited, but urged, to go inside - inside our homes and inside ourselves. We should be appreciating this dormant period when, like the plants, we can store our energy in preparation for the big bloom in the spring.
It feels like we should purposefully slow down to lay the foundation for the rest of the year. We have the time now to make sure this foundation is solid and level. That it is strong enough and broad enough to hold our dreams and support all that we will build in the coming months.
However, as is typical, once you have set a course, the universe seems to throw up everything it can to distract you from it. I've been under a lot of pressure lately to get things done - at work and at home, but all I want to do is slow down. That is really hard to do in a world that is go, go, go. I'm sure this is one of the lessons I'm meant to learn...
