Winter
Weather down here is not what I would call "ideal." After moving here, I realized that I love cold weather. I love bundling up, having that bite against your skin, smelling wood burning while people snuggle up to a roaring fire, seeing snow turn the landscape into something ethereal and otherworldly. I've never been a big fan of summer.
A) You can only take so many clothes off to cool down, but you can always add more to get warmer B) I tend to break out in the summer C) I never got to see my friends in the summer and always wanted school to start again so I could see them D) The heat can get oppressive, making it impossible to really enjoy yourself outdoors or in.
Now, I'm not saying I HATE summer - I like all the seasons. Summer is, however, my least favorite. Autumn for a long time was my favorite because of school, the changing leaves, the great weather, and Halloween.
But recently I have been wishing that it was winter. It has only JUST hit semi-autumn weather here in the Upstate, though there are certainly hot days. I find myself listening to Christmas songs - not the crappy popular ones, but the sacred ones that are less frequently heard and not as well-known. Sting has a great album out that I kinda want, filled with winter songs.
When I hear these, I can see myself sitting around a fire with friends and family, telling stories, enjoying company, celebrating, worshipping. It makes me think about what winter must have been like to generations past. Dark, sacred, frightening. Most of the work of the field would be done and you would have a store of food. You would have time to perfect other parts of your life, such as playing an instrument or working with wood or knitting or cooking. To make that warming fire, you would need to go out and collect your own firewood. You would eat only the food that was available, in season or stored. Mummers would come by and entertain you with songs and stories you'd only hear at this time of year. Christmas, a time for giving, would mean so much more. You would be giving of your hard work, your stores of food or your free time or the hard-earned money you had saved for a year. Nowadays, this is all lost. A $20 gift has almost no sacrifice involved. We work year-round. We heat our houses with fossil fuels. Food, even out-of-season food, is readily available. Fewer and fewer people know what a mummer is, and fewer still have been entertained by a mummers troupe. Christmas songs are commercialized, stories are available all the time...
I want winter. REAL winter. Not just cold weather, but that magic that only winter can bring. The togetherness, the holiness, the peace. At times, a simple life seems incredibly tempting.
A) You can only take so many clothes off to cool down, but you can always add more to get warmer B) I tend to break out in the summer C) I never got to see my friends in the summer and always wanted school to start again so I could see them D) The heat can get oppressive, making it impossible to really enjoy yourself outdoors or in.
Now, I'm not saying I HATE summer - I like all the seasons. Summer is, however, my least favorite. Autumn for a long time was my favorite because of school, the changing leaves, the great weather, and Halloween.
But recently I have been wishing that it was winter. It has only JUST hit semi-autumn weather here in the Upstate, though there are certainly hot days. I find myself listening to Christmas songs - not the crappy popular ones, but the sacred ones that are less frequently heard and not as well-known. Sting has a great album out that I kinda want, filled with winter songs.
Click to viewWhen I hear these, I can see myself sitting around a fire with friends and family, telling stories, enjoying company, celebrating, worshipping. It makes me think about what winter must have been like to generations past. Dark, sacred, frightening. Most of the work of the field would be done and you would have a store of food. You would have time to perfect other parts of your life, such as playing an instrument or working with wood or knitting or cooking. To make that warming fire, you would need to go out and collect your own firewood. You would eat only the food that was available, in season or stored. Mummers would come by and entertain you with songs and stories you'd only hear at this time of year. Christmas, a time for giving, would mean so much more. You would be giving of your hard work, your stores of food or your free time or the hard-earned money you had saved for a year. Nowadays, this is all lost. A $20 gift has almost no sacrifice involved. We work year-round. We heat our houses with fossil fuels. Food, even out-of-season food, is readily available. Fewer and fewer people know what a mummer is, and fewer still have been entertained by a mummers troupe. Christmas songs are commercialized, stories are available all the time...
I want winter. REAL winter. Not just cold weather, but that magic that only winter can bring. The togetherness, the holiness, the peace. At times, a simple life seems incredibly tempting.