Wednesday, June 12, 2013

A Winter of Content....







* Showering outdoors ...  you hurry to get under the hot spray of loveliness but linger to exit. You run inside chased by the wind and you melt in front of the heater. It's all about freezing your sweet patootie off in order to REALLY appreciate that cup of tea, that warm jumper, those toasty slippers. The contrast forces an absurd gratification and the reward is all the more sweeter for it.

* Food and Drink... it all takes on a new meaning for me when the weather cools down. It becomes sustenance rather than calories. I find myself seeking out comfort food like a truffle hunting boar. I cannot stay away from the pantry, I linger at the refrigerator, I don't even bother putting away the toaster. No Sir. It's time to fatten up. Hibernation is upon us and we must be ready to face Spring with a renewed strength to our constitution. 

* Making ... As the degrees descend I find it easier to locate that inner sanctum. The quiet place where ideas flow more readily and creativity entertains, rather than eludes, me. Words are everywhere like shells on the shore. Treasure hunting is fun. I am not taunted by the clock, instead it's ticking comforts me. I can make a brew... locate the chocolate stash (good for hibernation and creation) ... and then in a hedonistic state of catatonic rapture I am able to make things, write things, craft things and read things... and not for any end purpose either ...  No -  just for the sheer luxury of it. It's too cold outside.... best read a book.... it's raining... best start knitting .... it's wet and miserable... best make some bunting. Absurd to some. Completely logical to me. 

* Sunshine... an oxymoron to most I know - but Sunshine really is my favourite thing about a Perth Winter. It's all the pros and no cons... it's the blackcurrant lollies so rare in the mix... the lucky find... the gem. You can let it soak into your bones and there is not a bead of sweat to be seen. You can dry the linen naturally... you can spread the rug on the lawn... you can take tea in garden... with the chooks. The humble front patio setting, small and unassuming, quickly become the best seats in the house. The pooch knows it and will not budge for bone nor breakfast in a bid to savour every shard that comes his way. 

This is Winter for me peoples. It just feels like a time to be inexcusably content. Running from vehicle to front door in a downpour - content that you are sheltered. Thermal underwear - content that you are warm. Gardening - content that there are no flies. Appeased, fulfilled, smug, gratified... all synonyms for CONTENT.

What does Winter mean to you? What emotions does it evoke from you? Do you even like Winter? Is yours a wet or dry one? Do you have activities that you love undertaking when the cosy factor is increased? Are you a "big scoffer of all foodstuffs" ... as I seem to be? Family traditions? Bonfires? Favourite films? Do share. ♥

4 comments:

Vintage Jane said...

What lovely images. I do not like winter (my circulation is bad and the cold hurts my fingers and toes!) and live my days longing for summer. M x

terlee said...

It's just heading into the heat of Summer here. From now until late October I toil and sweat and dream of cold climates.

Your post--and photos--make me yearn for the wonders of Fall: the fresh chill in the air, the rain, but especially, the bliss of just being, because there's nothing else to be done.

ellen said...

Winter means lots of rain,sometimes snow and cold to the bones and a hunkering down time. Winter is filled with wonderful scents...bubbling soups, home baked bread, cookies and clove studded oranges..evergreens and wood smoke. I do love the summers here, when they finally arrive. Autumn is a great love of mine too. I may be in the minority, but the spring here doesn't do too much for me. We never completely lose green here during the winter, so perhaps it's because I haven't been color starved, and it is usually such a crazy soup of weather.
Loved your post.

In My Wild Eden said...

I love your writing. You always make me happy and I feel that we would definitely be friends if we had met outside blog world too. I used to not like winter but now I find it peaceful and comforting. The snow is deep and everything becomes so quiet, you can hear it falling. We love to light the fire and curl up close by with books, cozy, soft blankets and hot drinks. Sometimes you feel like your the only people left on earth and it's okay because you're together.