It was terribly cold this weekend. We got our share of those lovely extreme wind chills. Brrr. You know what? I’m still cold. I’ll be right back; I need more hot cocoa.

In the colder states, we’ve reached that point in winter where it’s starting to feel as though it’s been winter forever. And will be winter forever. But it won’t.

I like to think of this part of the year as that weird “dead to the world” sleep you get in the last few hours of the night after tossing and turning. 

It happens sometime past 3:00 a.m. You’re finally so exhausted from not sleeping that your body gives in, and you’re gone from this world. That is, until your alarm clock shocks you out of your comatose state.  

I’m trying to be patient and remind myself that I, too, should use this time to rest. We all start getting a bit antsy this time of year. The days are starting to get longer, bit by bit, and we’ve got plans and things we want to do once the weather warms up. But we’re not there yet and won’t be there for a while. At least not in this portion of the country.

So, for now, my friends, I encourage you to make another cup of tea, cocoa, or coffee and carve out some time to sit and be still and enjoy the quiet of the natural world. It’s harder to do these days in our busy, busy lives. It’s also harder to connect with the natural world; we must seek it out. 

But as the world spins lazily on its axis, softly slumbering, find some time to go outside and draw from that deep well of rest.