January Warmth and Some Winter Happiness

I’m not like many of you, I wear my love for winter on my sleeves.  I used to be more exuberant about it before the rhythm of adulthood took over with routines, errands, chores, duties, etc.  It’s the start of January and what makes this time unique to me is not the yearning for wellness and planning for the year ahead, but instead it’s the winter doldrums we seem to find ourselves in.  

October through December are months that harold the darkness of the northern hemisphere’s tilt. We fill these months immensly with every festival and celebration.  We ward off the sting this darnkess brings through abundance and an outpouring of our wealth.  But it is odd to me that January and February rest as months most of us just gently endure. 

For those of us in this northern part of the earth’s latitude, I advocate for reframing these next two or three months as we push towards the brightness of spring.  Winter is both the present moment to be experienced, and it is also our metaphor for looking deeper into our humaness.  

Life is about seeking and staying warm. 

I am not sure if I made this phrase up or if it came from someone else.  Life is about seeking and staying warm.

The idea has consumed my thoughts for the past couple of years, particularly in winter, but has bled into my experience through the rest of the year.  It started when my daughter was born.  The weeks on my parental leave centered around caring for my recovering wife and new baby.  I became curious of the history of postpartum practices (as one does) and how different cultures around the world managed this time.  What stood out to me in some of these practices was a rule that a mother should only drink hot broth instead of water for the first forty days.  

I remembered that this same practice is something that is done in arctic exploration.  During polar trips, explorers heat their food in a stew to warm the body from the inside out.  Every moment and calorie matters in a world of negative forty degrees.

Finding warmth.  Creating warmth.  Staying warm.  

Postpartum and artic survival on a surface level are completely different experiences, but both are pushing the body through something that is extraordinary.  The connection between the soft and slow journey a mother has in recovery and the harsh grueling game in the cold is one of sustaining warmth.  It is the base line of our existence.  Below 95 degrees and we are ceasing to exist.  

I think this should be applied beyond the body.  We use the word warm when referring to personalities or interaction we have with certain people.  We describe exerpiences in this language too, also throwing words in like cozy.  Is it not these types of connections or experiences that sustain us? Are they not as essential as maintaining the core temperatures of our bodies?  Are we not all the more happy and filled when experiences are rich, textured and inviting?

December is a month that perfectly emmulates this reality.  So much care and thought is put into expanding connection with others.  There is gift giving and endless holiday celebrations.  Lights are hung to radiate a warm light in the darkness of our spaces, candles flicker, warm beverages are consumed.  Memories are dusted off and relived through objects and decoration.  December is warmth.

The abundance of December is probably not sustainable for most people - I’m pretty exhausted by it.  But I am hoping to point out a human need — to keep the warm fire burning longer by adding logs to it.  Winter can be the canvas to heal our bodies, to slow down and focus.  It can be what draws us to connect with friends and create rooms filled with warmth.  Laughter is warm, drifting to sleep as the snow falls is warm, coffee with someone special is warm, playing old jazz music while cooking dinner is warm.

I get caught up in the rush of goals and planning that each new year brings. Sometimes I run at a pace that putters out after only a few weeks.  What I’ve had on my mind for a long time is focusing less on the outcome of these goals and more on living a presently focused life.  There’s obviously things to be done and completed, but the focus on just the outcomes loses the warmth of life.  

If life is about seeking and staying warm, I’ve only spent a few hundred words picking at this concept.  There’s so much to explore.  There are so many textures and layers that can be added to life and pile on additional warmth.  Life is to be lived after all. 

I think we should pursue the abundance that brought us warmth this winter. It doesn’t have to be much, but I think the idea is to find sources of heat throughout every aspect of our lives. This should be pursued diligently and feverishly — like our humanness depends on it.

A Few Ideas For a Warmer Life at Home

1. A game of cards with a few friends, dim the lights, put out some candles.  I’m a fan of four person Eukre (my house rules will be shared with you shortly).

   
   

2. Something to be said about meat and cheese boards.  I love the experience of trying a whole new set of foods and sharing with others how good something tastes or which combo is the best (watch out for a list of what I have on hand to wow anyone that comes over).

   
   

3. Start a homemade soup on the stove in the late afternoon, when the sun is still bright but will be fading soon.  Watch how the kitchen heats up as the sun sets and the glow from your house takes over. During these cold months I like making a traditional alpine cabbage soup (keep an eye our for this recipe soon!).