Winter Woes. Hashtag SAD.

I was six years old when I sang my first solo from the back of the Episcopal Church of the Nativity: “In the bleak mid-winter, frosty wind made moan; Earth stood hard as iron, water like a stone.”

Through the beautiful words, I remember the dark and almost lonely feelings they elicited. Bleak, for sure.

I’ve heard people say that we are connected to the Earth, and her rhythms. Not sure where a lot of that comes from, but in this case I think it is exactly correct. As in this pic, the bleakness of the season can impart a bleakness on our hearts.

If we don’t know, or expect this connection it can take us by surprise. At that point, you just find yourself in a funk, not knowing why or how or maybe assigning the cause to something else.

Here’s the take-home:

Knowledge is power. Know that this can impact your emotional state a tiny amount, somewhat, or a great deal, depending on the person. Once you understand that, you’ll not be blindsided by it any more and you can take steps to address it, like shining just a little light into the annual darkness.