child of the sun
A good portion of the country is covered in snow now. Storms are hitting places that only get sincere winter weather once in a blue moon. Other areas continue to be pummeled by cold. Meanwhile, here in Southern California it’s sunny and just a bit warm.
I often bemoan the fact that we don’t have seasons here, instead there are just subtle variations between all months that aren’t summer. Snow seems romantic, falling leaves beautiful and the rebirth of spring a joy. The seasons are natural markers of the wheel of life. Other places don’t live in one endless, dry medium with a few months of extra hot.
I realized this week that another place might not be so good for me. January can be hard, even without the cold temperatures. I feel like I’ve been wading through some murky darkness all year. I wanted to go in to hibernation. Even without being stuck indoors, it was hard to find the motivation to go outside or do much of anything. I imagine these feelings would only have been exacerbated by a real winter.
This week things took a turn, perhaps it was just a little bit more daylight or that I could have the office doors open during the day, but everything seems a bit brighter. I’m not so weighed down. I’m looking forward to more time spent in nature and more adventures and more daylight to spend doing whatever I want (even indoors).
I grew up in Chicago, and let me tell you, while I get nostalgic for the seasons…I go back and visit and a visit is enough! It would get so cold and dark and all my SAD symptoms were INSANE. Enjoy the sun – get some vitamin D 🙂
I grew up in Florida, and dreamed all my life of moving to New York City. I figured a couple of months of fluffy snow would be no big deal in exchange for escaping the unbearable Florida heat, but this winter has been BRUTAL. I can actually hear someone stuck in a snowbank with their car outside my window right now. It’s so miserable that my husband and I have actually decided to move to southern California- immediately. There must be something magical there to make me give up NYC so quickly! I can’t wait for some sunshine.
Sunshine yes, but get ready for dry weather. There’s no moisture like in NY or Florida. It’s much nicer in the summer to not be sticky though.
More than winter weather, the limited hours of daylight tend to kill me pretty dead during the middle of the season. That’s why I celebrate every extra minute after the solstice! I wonder if winter further north — where the sun doesn’t set during December — would be easier or harder?
I imagine the sun not setting at all would be really disorienting and would feel a different kind of endless. It does seem a like it might be fun though in some ways.