Winter Solstice Vibes
Another season is officially here!
Winter Solstice Greetings, Earth Lovers!
It was 4 degrees Fahrenheit last night, so winter has come early for me! I am all about being cozy, bundled, and slightly sleepy at all times. This sums up how I feel about this seasonal shift.
As the tradition goes here at the Earth Lovers newsletter headquarters, I will share with you my joys of this season as we make the official transition. My hope is that you will find some new, or renewed, way to fully embrace the official change.
Because when we embrace the seasons, we become fully alive. And why else are we here, if not to experience the magic offered by our incredible planet — that which sustains our every breath?
So, in no particular order, I give you my 2021 Winter Solstice vibes list.
Cue… crockpot
Calm down Instapot lovers. You can claim all the other seasons.
Allow me to explain…
Invariably, every time I mention how I love my crockpot (especially during winter time) the person I’m sharing this information with tells me about the best invention in 21st-century kitchen history… the Instapot. I have not invested in one yet, but I guess it’s like a crockpot on steroids. These Insta-lovers always gush about how they can cook an entire meal in 30 minutes or less. Great… if this was summer. I still won’t invest in this marvel of kitchen technology until at least the end of this glorious winter season.
Why?
Because I want my house to smell like simmering beef chili for 6 to 8 hours straight! That’s why.
It’s winter. I live in a cabin. It’s 4 degrees outside. Cue all the wintry things… including the smells of slow-cooking goodness for hours at a time. I need something that will wrap my senses in a warm blanket — promising an equally warm belly upon ingestion — to buffer against the cold chills I get from just looking outside at the frozen landscape.
I need… the crockpot. A pot that knows how to warm my senses, my belly, and my soul.
Plus, something magical happens when we sloooooooooowwww doooooowwwwn.
There is no better season for slowing down. Nature is actually begging us to do so. Winter is the season to chill.
My advice? Put the Instapot away one night a week and opt for a slow-cooked meal instead. (You can thank me later.)
Get outside
You know the other great thing about the crockpot? It gives you anywhere from 4-8 hours of free time to pursue other activities.
Take that time to go outside and do something!
Believe me, as someone who’s currently living with single-digit temperatures outside, I understand why people want to hunker down and ride out another day in the warmth of one’s home. But, if you have the right gear, and you take the time to bundle up, it can be downright invigorating to be outside. So far I’ve focused my efforts on winter walks, cross-country skiing, and dancing in the snowstorms. Oh yea, and a sprinkling of snow shoveling here and there (yes, that counts)!
You can add whatever outside activities you want, just make sure you get yourself outside several times a week. I promise it will lift your mood.
Do something festive
Celebrate the season, whatever that means to you. Perhaps this is the time of year you celebrate special religious holidays. Maybe you have a tradition that your family has done every winter season — continue it! Traditions can help build positive memories and associations in an otherwise light-lacking (read: potentially depressing) season.
When I say “festive”, what I really mean is the spirit of the season. That means different things to different people. To me, it means cozy warm blankets, hot beverages, long talks with friends and reading good books. Figure out what it means to you and make sure to do it. Don’t let the season pass you by without celebrating it in a way that’s festive for you.
Investigate the incredibly small
Have you ever looked at a snowflake? I mean, really examined it? It is literally the epitome of nature’s magic wrapped up in the size of your fingertip. Anytime I’ve been able to witness the reality of a snowflake in real life, I have been awestruck.
How does the earth do this?!
I’m not saying you have to bust out your magnifying glass and go freeze yourself looking at snowflakes but… maybe you should?! Or, there could be something else in nature just as small as — or smaller than! — a snowflake to soak in: ladybugs, blades of grass, needles on a tree, grains of sand on a beach, or even mushrooms!
*Check out these incredibly small mushrooms I found growing on a pine cone a few years ago. Granted, this was the fall (wrong season), but the point is…. this stuff is out there. And it will blow your mind and make you fall in love with mama Earth all over again. How is this even possible?! And we get to experience it!
…And investigate the incredibly large
Last night, that same 4-degree night (remember?!), I went outside with cheery hopes of catching what was pegged to be an incredible Geminid meteor shower with the potential for one hundred meteors per hour. I froze for about 15-20 minutes, craning my neck up in hopes the clouds would dissipate.
I saw exactly one shooting star.
Then my teacup was empty, the clouds covered all but the brightest stars, and I went back inside to thaw out.
Even though I didn’t see much in the way of the Geminids, I did receive a deeply nourishing sense of the massiveness of our planet and universe. Everything outside was utterly still and silent. The trees towered over me, snow stacked high atop their branches. And the darkness around me bled into the darkness above me. It seemed to go on forever.
The same way I was awed by the infinitesimal nature of a snowflake, I was also awed by the magnitude of the mountains, the trees, and the universe itself. They are all, in some ways, mirroring each other.
Life’s Paradox
Don’t be afraid to call on mother nature’s contrasts as resources to help put your life into perspective.
Whenever you are feeling small, like you don’t matter or what you are doing in life doesn’t matter — go outside and find something smaller than yourself. It will always be possible. There are billions and billions of beings living on this planet who are tinier than you. Witnessing them, getting curious about them, and honoring them can help you gain perspective on how large and important your life and actions actually are.
Conversely, whenever you may be feeling annoyed that life isn’t going your way…Perhaps you are a bit bruised or beaten down by life’s many hurdles (it can be tough, I know), try this — go outside and spend time near something massive: a large lake, the ocean, a gigantic tree, a mountain… or even just a field that seems to go on forever. This practice of looking outside of ourselves to see the magnitude of our planet, and the universe, may help us feel humbled and better able to sort things out from a different perspective.
It’s a true paradox: we aren’t that small and we aren’t that large in the whole scheme of the Earth. Learn to accept this paradox we live in. And each day, strive to live in reverent appreciation of the small and large aspects of life on this Earth.
Both the tiny and the massive deserve our attention and utmost respect.
Thanks for reading! We will meet again, when the snow melts and the crocuses shine.
Until then, I’m wishing you and yours a warm and lovely winter season!
In Gratitude,
Kristy Lynn
Can't wait to read your first novel. You are an amazing writer. I can feel the seasons. Ohpa