Oh hello winter, I guess you're really here now. And with that realization comes the sense that winter is not all terrible. In fact, if you stay with me today I may even be able to convince you that there are reasons to love winter.
Winter has a way of pressing in. The cold sharpens its edges, the sky settles into muddled puddles of gray and white with only occasional bursts of sun. It’s easy to hate the season, to wait anxiously for the first signs of spring. And yet winter has a kind of charm. It's quieter, harder to find. And sometimes, like ordinary magic, you really have to search for it.
5 Reasons Not to Hate Winter
1. Many Cups of Tea
There’s a kettle whistle, then steam curling into the air. It’s quiet work, making tea. You steep, you wait, you sip. In the deep of winter, I go through 3, 4, even 5 cups of tea a day. The heat blooms through your fingers, into your chest. No one’s counting how many minutes you spend stirring tea, sitting by the window, watching the sun glint off snow. While I will take a cup of tea any day, any time of year, there’s something extra cozy about hot tea on a cold day.
2. The Magic of Snowflakes
When we grow up, we seem to forget how much magic is everywhere. I love winter with children - they see the magic. They are in absolute awe of the change in seasons. Snow is magic to them and they hold out mittened hands, try to catch them, laugh when the cold settles into their skin. You watch them and feel it—how their wonder works on you. How their wonder seeps into you. And suddenly those icy pellets become something more - something sweet and softly beautiful.
3. The Kitchen in Winter
I find that the kitchen changes in the colder months. It becomes a gathering place, alive with movement. Soup on the stove, bread in the oven, even the hum of the dishwasher. There’s warmth here, not just from the heat of an oven, but from the slow rituals of cooking. Winter makes you linger over meals, take your time. It’s not just sustenance; it’s comfort. And it feels good—necessary, even—to make something from scratch when the outside world is laid bare under the icy grip of winter.
4. The Poetry of Nature
Winter strips the world down to its bones. Bare trees, ice glinting off rooftops, snowbanks that stretch long and unbroken. It’s stark, almost harsh, but there’s something in it that stirs the creative mind. I notice the details more: the way shadows stretch long in the thin light, the way frost sketches patterns on glass. Icicles hanging off rooftops and trees. Sunlight sparkling on sunny days. The heavy movement of storm clouds. Winter feeds the creative mind, offers both time and fuel. It says here is the world - what beauty can you find on the edges of this season?
5. The Gift of Rest
Winter slows everything down. The days are short and blustery. The world outside pauses—animals burrow, plants retreat, even the air itself seems quieter. And so, you pause too. You sleep a little longer. You sit by the fire under a cozy blanket. You read books you’ve been meaning to. You might try your hand at poetry or painting. Winter gives you this gift, if you let it. A season to stop and rest. To let yourself simply be.
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