It’s nearing the end of January, now, and I’ve got a question for you. How’s that New Year’s Resolution going?
If you said anything positive, this column isn’t for you. Continue on with your achievements. Proud of you!
*looks around*
Okay, now that they’re gone, if you said that you don’t do them at all, or have already lost momentum, you are my people.
Personally, I’m in the “don’t do them” camp. I like to wake in the morning with fresh hope instead of stale, heavy shame. Just funny that way, I guess.
However, if I was going to make a resolution, now is absolutely not the time of year I would choose. With the winter solstice on December 21st, we, along with nearly all other life in this hemisphere, on this planet, are supposed to enter a period of hibernation. Winter is not a supposed to be time of achievement and hustle. It’s supposed to be a time of finding a warm, comfortable place to power down, recharge, and repair. We are meant to spend this season resting after 9 months of planting, growing, and harvesting. This is the natural order of things.
Human beings in general, and Western Culture in particular, really messed it up when we decided to extend the hustle and slay to all the days. For, in doing so, we built burnout right into our lives. But, I digress.
I’m not a resolution person, but if I was, choosing winter as a period of setting new habits is the absolute last choice I’d make. It sets us up to not follow through, BECAUSE WE AREN’T SUPPOSED TO right now. You know what time of year fits new habits and new growth? Spring.
In spring, new life emerges, and the freshness of growth begins again, In the spring, the weather begins to warm, life begins to stir, and we are invigorated by the joy of damp soil in fresh air. We plant seeds in the spring, so why wouldn’t we choose that time (if at all—I think you’re perfect as is) to plant new healthy habits? Doesn’t spring make more sense?
Look, if you want to make changes or start new habits, great. I believe in you. But, maybe don’t do it now. For now, why don’t you join me in appreciating the beauty of a life lived slowly. Let’s find our comfy pants that stretch, maybe make some bread, go outside for a minute (when it isn’t -25 wind chill) to slowly breathe in the crisp air and see the glint of sparkling light on pristine snow on a leisurely walk. Take it slow. We were never meant to hustle and grind in the winter. In the winter, we rest.
Sara Middleton is a freelance columnist and and resident artist/owner of Studio Sol Gallery & Creative Space in Eagle Grove, Iowa. Email her at sara.studiosol@gmail.com or find Studio Sol on Facebook or Instagram.
