Hygge: a quality of coziness and comfortable conviviality that engenders a feeling of contentment or well-being (regarded as a defining characteristic of Danish culture)
I've never been a winter person. I love warm air and sunshine. Summer is my favorite season and my happy place is a sandy beach, basking in the hot sun, listening to the ocean waves.
Every winter I suffer from SAD (seasonal affective disorder). This year, I decided that I'm tired of feeling that way, I'm tired of hating winter. It takes up 1/3 of the year, I have to figure out a way to embrace it.
Moving to a house that has a backyard full of nature - plants, flowers, trees, birds, squirrels, and insects - has been a lesson in coping with the different seasons. I have no experience in gardening and so I've been watching a lot of tutorial videos on You Tube and I read a lot of gardening articles and what I've learned is that winter is an important part of the life of plants. Winter is a time of rest and renewal so that in the spring, the plants have the energy they need to sprout back to life. My husband and I made sure that all of our plants and flowers were covered in mulch so that they have a warm, cozy place to sleep all winter.
While I can't sleep all winter (that sounds so nice, though, doesn't it?), I can look at winter as an opportunity to rest and renew. I can take more moments to appreciate the warmth and coziness of our home and enjoy things that I don't always have time to enjoy during other seasons, like reading, knitting, and painting. I can try out more healthy comfort food recipes and appreciate just having to take a few steps down to my basement to work out in a gym.
I've also been taking little walks in my backyard, reminding myself that nature is still doing its thing. The birds and squirrels are enjoying the seeds produced by the plants. I breathe in the fresh air, even if it's frigid, and when the dogs look at me like, "Mom, it's cold, let's go back inside" I feel so grateful for the warmth that greets me when I step inside the house.
Although winter has just begun and in a couple of months (or even weeks) I may feel differently, for now, I feel appreciation for winter and the comforts it brings.
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