Some Beach, Somewhere

Powdery soft pristine beaches, wild arrays of turquoise & emerald colored waters, tropical fish zig-zagging around my feet, an umbrella drink in my hand & thoughts of snow & ice a distant memory. Ahhh, how I'd love to be on some beach, somewhere right now.

But, instead, its 6:00 in the morning, the only light outside is the MOON, I have to start my car early to defrost the windshield & I'm dressed in layers to face the various stages of cold. Hard to believe winter has only just officially started two weeks ago.

So instead of having this warm-weather beach fantasy, today I'm going to focus on what there is to love about winter! Hmmm... nothing jumps to mind. Perhaps the best way to do it is with child-like eyes. Children don't worry about if the roads are going to be icy, whether or not they'll have to shovel in the morning, or if their feet are going to get wet. Winter holds a lot of joy if you look at it through the eyes of a child. So first, I'll just simply look out the window...

The whole world is sparkling like a million diamonds are spread across a blanket of white, moon beams bouncing from each crystal with a magical shimmer. You don't see sights like this in the summer.

And again I do love the purity & beauty of snow. At a time of the year when the skies can be so cloudy & dark, a covering of snow brightens up a dull & dreary world!

And, with child-like joy, think of all the ways there is to PLAY in the winter - sledding, skating, skiing, snowmobiling. Build a snowman, have a snowball fight, make snow angels, catch a snowflake on your tongue! Remember what it was like to have a 'snow day' with nothing but time to PLAY.

"But I'm not a child," you say. "I'm a grown up & this snow & ice is hindering what I need to do!" I can relate! I get mighty frustrated when I get stuck in my own driveway - most of us don't have jobs that allow us to come in when the weather clears. However, you can think of winter as a time of year that allows other luxuries. Come spring time there will be lawns to mow, gardens to tend & many other outdoor obligations or pleasures. Winter is a time to find the joys in INDOOR projects. Finish reading that book you started, process all the photos you took in the fall, play a board game with your family, research your family history or just plain relax, feet up on the couch & remember that come Spring, you'll be too busy for a moment like this.

Winter Quotes:

In the depth of winter I finally learned that there within me lay an invincible summer ~ Albert Camus

Adversity draws men together and produces beauty and harmony in life's relationships, just as the cold of winter produces ice-flowers on the window-panes, which vanish with the warmth. ~Soren Kierkegaard

To shorten winter, borrow some money due in spring. ~ W.J. Vogel

There are three reasons for becoming a writer: the first is that you need the money; the second that you have something to say that you think the world should know; the third is that you can't think what to do with the long winter evenings. ~ Quentin Crisp

Winter is the season in which people try to keep the house as warm as it was in the summer, when they complained about the heat ~ unknown