I’m cold. I’m tired of being snowed in. I’m weary of shoveling my porch only to have it covered over in snow again in a few hours. My stomach gets tied in knots when I get in the car to drive on the icy roads with near zero visibility. I’m not amused with ice boulders every few feet smacking into the side of my car. And, I’m already anticipating what the flooding is going to be like when this snow finally begins to melt.
BUT……….the truth of the matter is that winter is here and there is really nothing I can do to change that fact. I can fuss and fume. I can cry and whine. I can pout and scream. I can threaten to leave the area. I can kick in the side of my car when it gets stuck in yet another snow drift. But none of that helps. It only gives a spike to my blood pressure and makes my mood change to a dismal level of complaint and ungratefulness.
We really and truly do have choices when it comes to situations like this. We can fight it, OR we can make a quiet resolve to get through the “winter of our lives” as best we can and come through a survivor. I’ve decided to chill out and get through. One of the ways I’m doing this is by looking at lots and lots of pictures of happy times I’ve spent in the sunshine! Times when life felt good and right and warm and wonderful. Times when the sun was literally shining on my face and making me feel alive and energized from the inside out.
And, you know what? It helps! It honest and truly helps to remember those happy times and to actually “see” that those times were real. I spent some time this morning looking through my photos and smiling. Ahhh…….so many wonderful moments spent in the sunshine with family and friends. So many gorgeous photos of flowers and green grass and blue skies and fluffy white clouds floating aimlessly through the sky. Just seein the photos of the sunshine helped take away the chill my body was feeling as the snow continued to fall.
Even more helpful is looking at these pictures and absolutely knowing that spring will return just as certain as the night will turn into day. I have found HOPE in the winter of my life by remembering the springtimes that I’ve been so blessed to enjoy! A picture really is worth a thousand words and more!!!!
If you’re in the dead of winter and it feels like it’s never going to end, why not pull out some photo albums and begin to be filled with hope and joy? I guarantee you that you’ll have tons of laughter along the way, too! Winter? Sure. Everybody goes through winter, and some winters are worse than others. But…………everybody gets to experience spring, too, and many, many springs are too awesome to put into words.
Stop fighting winter. It’s here. It won’t last forever. Make the most of it (there actually is beauty to be found — even in the most horrible of winters). And, get out those pictures of the moments you’ve enjoyed in the springtimes of your life. Laugh. Love. Live. Enjoy. Yep, even in the winter!!! Why wait until spring when you can be happy today?
Love to you,
Clara