For most of my life, December 21 has been my least favorite day of the year. It is the shortest day of the year, and to me, it represents being in the throes of my least favorite season with at least two miserable months ahead of me.
That changed a few years ago when a friend made a beautiful post on social media about the joy of the winter solstice. The last thing I had ever seen in this day was joy. I fucking hated it, but her post made me reconsider my position on the winter solstice.
I wish I had saved her exact words because it was so lovely. The basic concept was the winter solstice is a day for reflection. It is a day when we stop moving into the dark and begin moving toward light as the days will finally start getting longer.
Her few kind and beautiful words changed my whole perspective on the day. Moving from dark to light. I freaking love that. Since then, I’ve begun to embrace the day as one of snuggling in and a necessity to get back to the days of spring and sun.
Now, don’t get me wrong, I still hate January and February with the intensity of 1000 suns. However, I know these days of gray and darkness, too, shall pass. Thank goodness.
Winter is a tough time for a lot of people who struggle with seasonal affective disorder (SAD) like myself. SAD may seem like a joke diagnosis, but if you have it, it’s no joke. The days are hard and the depression is real.
Fortunately, I live in the south and the winters are fairly mild, although disturbingly gray. If I can make it till the end of February, the sun actually returns and things begin to brighten up. However, those can be two very long months of winter. I really feel for folks up north. I just couldn’t do it. I did it one year in Wisconsin and it damn near killed me. I even had a trip to Hawaii that year. It still almost broke me!
I now realize it is especially important to be kind to myself this time of year; and give myself some grace for not getting much accomplished. Remember to focus on the brighter and warmer days to come, and most importantly, appreciate a good flannel shirt and pair of Smartwool socks.
I will say I don’t mind the cooler temps this year as I am waist-deep in menopause and my body temp is considerably higher. However, I still detest the fucking gray. It’s horse shit.
So as the solstice just passed, I look to the future and the longer days. I will welcome all things spring including a significant lift in my mood. I hope others who deal with the winter blues can do the same. A great Buddhist adage states the truth: Winter never fails to turn to spring.
Angela Traver
What is this blog about? Well, it's a general blog, but it is also a very specific blog. If you get that reference, you get a gold star! I have been a public relations professional and writer of press releases for more than 20 years—primarily in the booze biz. I decided to do some writing for fun and embrace the humor that gets me through most days. Hopefully it will make you chuckle—or at least smile. I’m a certified crazy magnet, and more than a little nutty myself, so buckle up. Also, I have two vices—profanity and red wine/whiskey. You’ve been warned. It should also be noted, that I’m a HUGE Bob & Sheri fan. I’ve been a listener for more than 20 years. This opportunity is a dream come true and it may have made me cry. That being said, I cry at everything. If you are into booze, dogs, food and/or knitting, hit me up on Instagram, Facebook or Twitter (although I’m terrible at Twitter and it scares me) @kyspiritsgal. You can also find all my previous blog posts at www.kyspiritsgal.com.
