winter : the season of indecision
– Sara Avant Stover in The Way of the Happy Woman
I’m thick in the season of indecision; wandering aimlessly from one task to the next and completing very little. There’s great comfort in knowing that I’m simply responding to the season; winter is a time to hibernate, rest and renew. It’s the season of stillness and quiet; productivity doesn’t fit into the equation. It is also the time of year where I feel my most fragile…I’m more vulnerable in the cold and seek comfort and warmth in the home. Perhaps I, too, am stripped bare.
I birthed that little girl up there on the full moon in mid-winter, hence her name: Poet Winter. She turns three in a few weeks time and I’m witnessing the almighty change that accompanies the leap from toddler to pre-schooler. It’s wondrous and heartbreaking. Her first three years have been fleeting and she’s grown into an articulate, humorous, intelligent little girl who displays far more coordination and rhythm that I ever have. She likes to pick flowers and place them in vases beside her bed, she cuddles her teddy or a floppy-eared rabbit every night and she never, ever listens to me, hence we are often running late. She loves with all her heart and gives the tightest, squishiest hugs I have ever received. She is a warm child, always running a little hot, and she snuggles right in of an evening, curling up in my lap and promptly falling asleep.
Not long after she went to bed last night I cut an onion in half and placed it beside Che’s bed; he woke with a clear head an no sniffles this morning – witchy success! There are so many informative comments in this post and I must also send you over to Another Day where my friend Elke has written a far more comprehensive list of health tips. Elke researches everything to the nth degree and then puts all her findings into practise – she’s an inspiration and I promise you’ll learn a lot from her.
For now it’s time for me to sneak in some lunch and a bit of writing before school pick-up and our afternoon rhythm of fresh juice (orange, kiwi, carrot and beetroot), a bike ride, dinner prep and coming in for the night – (windows closed, blinds down, heater on, candles lit).
I’m balancing the slumber of winter with plenty of walks in the sun, some trampolining to get the lymph moving, warm baths with coconut oil and hot nettle, chamomile and ginger teas. I’ve also started wearing subtle energies’ pitta oil as a perfume – its calming effects are profound.
Tell me, do you experience indecision and unproductive days during winter? Do you tend to feel more vulnerable in the cold?
Interesting post. I find Winter to be the season of renewal. More so than Spring. In the Wintertime I draw nearer to my loved ones, embrace the challenge of the cold and find new life. Maybe I just appreciate the extra sleep 😉 My Winter-babe just turned four – and you're right about the fleeting nature of time.
I think indecision and a lack of productivity go hand-in-hand with Winter. It's time for us to rest and renew so that we're ready for when Spring arrives and we become busy worker bees once again. That said, for me, Winter is busy in its own way. When the days are cold, I sit on the couch and knit, working the yarn into warm garments for my loved ones and new babes that are born around me.
For me, Winter is a favourite time of year (but then, I say that about every season!)
Stay warm and inspired, Linda. x
I find the winter season to be energising. I love the crisp, cold winds and if it rains (nearly) every day I am a happy women. Everything is green and fresh and damp as opposed to dry and dusty in the summer. I find I get so much more done in the garden as well as inside. I love closing up the house and getting the kids to bed early before settling in for a long evening of "me time". Oh how I love winter!
oh yes! I used to hate winter because of how it made me feel. lately I'm starting to appreciate it. Slowly but steadily to accept that it's a time lo slow down, to hibernate, to be indoors. It's not much in my nature so it's not effortless for me but I'm learning and starting even to appreciate it!
Yes definitely. Seems like the catch cry of the whole season, vulnerability and introspection. There's something bitter sweet about that. Love a witchy remedy too, the cut onion smothered in honey, that's a great one.
It's the opposite for me! I love winter and as such, am actually more productive than I am in summer. I'm cooking/ baking up a storm, creating, sorting out Everything in the house. It's lovely.
However, my MIL is just the same as you are 🙂
It's strange to think of it being winter there, when here we have 98-degree days and humidity. I can relate, though, to your feeling vulnerable in colder, leafless seasons. There is a loss of independence in having your comings and goings–all your movements outdoors from place to place–limited and regimented by the weather.
That opening quote is so gorgeous and so true. It's interesting to read how different people receive the seasons. I am busy through the Winter, but in a 'quieter' way as I too do a lot of knitting, planning, researching and the like through these longer nights when the children are tucked up in bed early. It's a lovely time of year because there's something very restorative about those big doses of 'me' time. I find Summer can have that same quietness to it because everything is growing along on it's own and we get to sit back and be witness to the beauty of it all just happening. I definitely have a sense of 'ahhhh' as Winter rolls around because Spring for it's 'jump up and live again' energy that has us running around re-planting, waking up and getting going again is quite busy, just as Autumn with all it's harvesting and preserving. Goodness, when Winter rolls around after all that busyness in the kitchen and garden, I'm definitely ready for those long nights and shorter days!
Thank you very much for your kind words Jodi about my post. I am glad to once again have a space that can be amongst the network of parents sharing ideas and inspiration online. I missed a connection with that during my blogging hiatus.
All Blessings xxxx Oh, and enjoy that no bell time! 🙂
The winter is not the same here as it is where we're from – the cold of Central Western NSW. We've been her more than 10 years now and I never feel it's quite right. I like that wind to whip away and strip away. I love that cold chaffing of cheeks and the common cuddle or huddle at sporting fixtures and school pick-ups, though they're long gone. I love the bonfire nights and the wonder of faces staring up as a log shifts and embers climb to be caught and carried against the black of the night and the negatives of ghost gums. I love winter and miss it.
Hi! I've been visiting your blog from time to time. I identify with the feelings you describe in this post. My energy goes down in winter and I think the main reason is that the days are shorter. I enjoy sunny winter days but once the sun goes down I wish I could hibernate for the rest of the season! The good part is that daylight comes back the next morning 🙂 Today winter started on this side of the world too, and the good news is that from now on the days become longer minute by minute. I also believe that even when everything in nature seems to be sleeping, there’s a lot going on inside. Spring doesn’t happen in a day, it takes months of preparation! So, if you feel like staying in and make a pause, maybe is not unproductive, maybe there’s a lot going on inside waiting to spring!
We have tried the onion trick for the past two nights with great success! The colds are still there, but not as bad. The best thing has been that the two kids in question have slept for the full night during that time. Up until now, they were awake every night coughing (one) and with a sore throat (the other). I don't know whether they were knocked out by the onion fumes (!), but whatever, this is a tip we'll be sharing ourselves!