What I Learned This Winter

Every three months, I join in with some folks over at Emily’s place and write about what I learned this season. So, at the end of February, May, August, and November, I spend some time reflecting on what I’ve learned.

Honestly, I don’t remember, immediately, what I’ve learned. I have to mine my own posts and my planner where I record my to-do’s and my thoughts. In the end, I have something concrete to look at and I love it. I highly recommend it!

*I think I have SAD. The weather has been overcast and gloomy for much of the last several months and I’m really dragging. I keep throwing out the idea of moving further south, but so far, Nathan thinks that a terrible idea. He’s right. The only time I want to move is when I miss the sun.  I’m considering buying a special lamp for light therapy.

*You can have a writing “retreat” in your own home. For the last several years, I’ve been a part of a local writing group. I’ve always thought it would be lovely if we could all get away together and write. However, you know how busy people are and how difficult it is to get something like that scheduled, right?

I took a hint from advice I’ve heard shared by Tsh Oxenreider. She encourages people to embrace imperfect solutions. Too often, we do nothing because we’re waiting for all the stars to align and allow for this perfect scenario and then it doesn’t happen. The stars never align.

At the beginning of January, I checked my calendar and decided on a Saturday I was going to dedicate to writing. Then I asked my writing group if they wanted to join me. I kicked my husband and kids out of the house for the morning and opened up my house as a quiet writing space.

It wasn’t fancy, but I provided a place to spread out, easy access to plug-ins and wi-fi. We spent the morning writing and then we went out for lunch.

*The Greatest Showman is an amazing movie.  It made me cry and it wasn’t because it was sad. It had a happy ending. There were two things that really touched me: 1) The message of the movie and 2) The artists were clearly having so much fun performing this.  You can’t miss that joy. That’s what it looks like when someone is doing what they were made to do.

Speaking of joy, I love this video clip and the story behind it. It chokes me up because I can see the tension in Hugh Jackman. That man loves to sing. This song is the culmination of his character’s development– it’s what everything in this movie has been building toward and to see him standing there and trying, at this doctor’s orders, to not sing.

The man had to sing. It didn’t take long to realize there was no way he could stand there an not sing. It didn’t matter that he had 80 stitches in his nose. And to see the reaction from the chorus around him, it’s pure joy. (Cue more tears)

 

*I can’t read nonfiction books while I’m lying down. Is this something that’s obvious to everyone else and I just figured it out? I want to underline and highlight things. That’s not happening while I’m tucked into bed and reading before I drift off to sleep.

What did you learn this winter?

One thought on “What I Learned This Winter

  1. loved stopping by your blog and reading your list. Also, I finally caved in and bought a therapy light this winter. It was sooooo worth every penny for me. Maybe, it didn’t cure all my depression which I often struggle with especially in winter, but I do think it helped tremendously to be honest. Also, laughing at the reading while lying down tidbit; I can relate.

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