Happy Winter

Happy winter!

Tomorrow will be three seconds longer.

For those of us who adore long days with heat and sunshine, that is not an insignificant number. And, although I will always love spring and summer, this year, finally, I am relishing the season. Perhaps it's because I sense this great internal freedom I haven't allowed myself to really feel my entire working life. There was always a "have-to" there. (I have to work to earn money to keep a roof over my head or I will end up an old bag lady living in the streets and eaten by wild dogs).

And so, the joy I found was in summer with its long days that somehow made work appear to not take up as large a part of those days. Now, I no longer have-to, unless I choose to impose them on myself - which I still do frequently enough. And so I am giving thanks every day for the wonders and miracles of every day - like the trumpeter swans who spend the winter on the pond and the mystical quality of the early morning winter light and the sweet smell of the damp earth and the coziness of snuggling on the couch with a good book while  the world throws a dark blanket across my windows.

Life is good - and the days are getting longer.