winter makes me feel zen

And now we welcome the new year,

full of things that have never been.

- Rainer Maria Rilke

Happy 2018 everyone!

I hope this finds you all in good health and spirits
and that if you did celebrate Christmas,
it was a good one.

This (below) is what I see outside my window right now. 
They're predicting from 20 to 40cm of snow,
along with high winds & freezing rain.

Hopefully, we won't lose power
until I'm able to post this. :)

Christmas here was a bit strange this year.
Between cancelled plans due to freezing rain,
an emergency trip to the hospital for dad on Christmas eve,
and a snowstorm on Christmas day,
it was just a little different, let's say.  ;)

Thankfully, dad's emergency ended up being sorted out quickly.
He thought he was having another heart attack,
but it turned he tore a muscle
when he sneezed the day before!
He went to the hospital by ambulance 
at 7am on Christmas eve,
and I drove him back home at 4pm.

We were all relieved and
he was very happy to be back home.
He went right back to watching
Christmas movies,
as if he hadn't skipped a beat. :)

In that lovely space between Christmas & New Year,

I spent lots of time

making soups,

reading & writing,

painting, and

watching movies.

Basically, doing as little as possible.

Some people go all out during this time
with goals and plans and resolutions
that put me to shame.
Clearly, I'm not one of those people.
I seem to do more thinking than anything else
in that quiet week after the holidays.
And chances are good I'll be in this mindset
for at least a few months.
Maybe it's a Canadian hibernating thing? ;)

Like I'm mentally preparing for the new year.
The one thing I do that's as close to a plan as I'll ever get,
is Susannah Conway's UNRAVEL YOUR YEAR.
I've been doing it for a few years now,
and it always helps me ease into the new year
without much pressure 
and look back at how much I've actually accomplished
in the year I'm leaving behind.

I don't know about you, but I often feel
like i get very little done in the course of a year.

Until I look back.

And it's not even about what I get done
but more about how I feel at the end of the year.

I've been walking as much as I can,
because i really think it's the most beneficial form
of exercise for the body AND the mind.

It can be so meditative - 
even if the weather makes it challenging sometimes.

This photo (below) was taken a few days ago,
when it was about -18C. (closer to -25C with the windchill!)
On that day, I dressed like an eskimo and braved the cold
and it was so worth it.
I ended up walking for an hour
and came back feeling like I had gone to a spa.
Seriously.
I know I would miss winter
if I lived in a warm climate.

Of course, winters can be harsh here in eastern Canada,
and come March, I'm ready for the sun again.
But if you dress properly when you have to leave the house, 
and the roads are cleaned fairly quickly after a storm,
it's really not that big of a deal.

It may not be pretty outside right NOW
but by tomorrow, when the plows have cleared the roads
and the sun comes out again,
it's gonna bright & beautiful.
You just wait and see. ;)

Here's to wishing you all magic
in the new year!!
xo