Deep in the Heart of January

I drove out to the frozen Mississippi River to visit with new friends and see a part of the world that I had not known existed until recently, the Driftless area of Wisconsin. It was beautiful. It was exquisite. I never knew that ice and snow could be so lovely. A winter day that is milder and sunny in the Midwest can be like a dream. Quickly, I have learned to embrace days like this because they are uncommon around here.

Deep in the heart of January, we can see the hand of the Divine, sculpting frozen landscapes into works of art. Deep in the heart of our struggles with grief and change, we can experience grace and joy. The frigid cold of winter can bring us to a space of sadness or depression, and it can also bring us into a space of deep reverence for the currents in life that are more powerful than we are. We can choose to resist the winter-times in our lives, or we can submit.

One of the gifts of having faith in something bigger and far more powerful than us (God, the Universe, Divine Spirit, the Great Creator, etc.…) is that we can let go of our suffering around the false belief that we are in control, if just for a moment. In my experience, the most important and impactful things that ever happened to me were not by my design. I did not plan them. They happened and I coped. Winter is like that. It happens. It can be devastating or beautiful. And we must cope.

What I am wondering is if we spend far too much of our time planning, manipulating, and expecting. We spend too little of our time reflecting, experiencing, and risking. Winter is a time for reflecting on ourselves, experiencing things as they are and not how we wish they were, and risking the status quo by endeavoring to see things in a new light. Winter can be a strange and challenging time, and it’s incredibly important to lean into it. Winter is a gift of Spirit.

So here is the challenge and the growth opportunity of winter: even during the darkest, coldest, and riskiest days of the year, we can find beauty in desolation, warmth in the frigid, and friendship in solitariness. Even in the harshest winters, there are days when the weather breaks, the temperatures become tolerable, and it is possible to see beyond the bitterness into a place of grace and deep, deep beauty.

Suggested homework: even on your darkest days, even in your coldest moments, what brings you light and warmth?