winter fires

Sat in my backyard this morning and watched the hummingbirds and bees have a little pollen rave on this flowering bush.  I don't know what this is called but it blooms like crazy this time of year.

 

Just spent 20 minutes trying to find out what it is.  It might be a Hummingbird Trumpet.

I feel very fortunate that I can still see blooming flowers and hear the birds sing while the rest of the country is either buried in snow or just plain freezing.  I really have to remember to appreciate it and take more walks.

I know that there is a natural rhythm to the seasons.  Winter is a time of going inside, letting the earth rest, slowing down and being quiet.  But I remember that winters for me were just dark.  Dark for a very long time.

Nocturne:Grey and Gold - Snow in Chelsea (1876) by James McNeill Whistler

I think that I might be able to handle it better now.  (Easy to say, here in my sunny, 72 degree day.)  I know that I would have to face winter differently.  Instead of burying myself deeper, trying to hide from the darkness, I would have to embrace winter's brighter moments.  Take walks on brisk, sunny days.  Find ways to play in the snow like we did as kids.  Spend those dark nights in a circle of warmth and laughter with family and friends.

Light fires.  That's it.  I would have to keep remembering to light fires in my life.  It is easy for me to stop.  To hide.  To let darkness surround me.  If I keep lighting fires, I might be able to confine the darkness to a smaller corner of my world.  I couldn't banish it entirely.  It will always be there, I know.  It is because I have known the dark that I am now more able to greet the light with such joy and gratitude. 

For those of you who are in the midst of your dark and cold winter - keep trying to light fires.  Spring always comes.  Really.  It does.

Photo by Ryan Mahle from Sherman Oaks, CA, USA

This file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 License.