This morning, over breakfast, my son stated that he’s already sick of winter and it hasn’t even officially started yet. He’s not alone in hating this time of year but it’s not winter he’s sick of. It’s autumn. Autumn starts off so beautifully but is actually the bleakest, darkest time of year. I told him to hang in there. The sun is coming back on or about Friday.
That’s why we celebrate the beginning of winter: because the light is returning.
The sky in New York is frequently overcast especially in late fall and throughout the winter. The world here gets gray. The trees are bare. The grass is dormant and mostly brown. Just when the gray really starts getting to you; the light changes. Yes, it gets cold. Yes, it gets snowy and cloudy but if you look for the signs you will find them. You will see the sun creeping back in.
I told him it’s one of the things I keep track of as winter progresses. The cold and gray can’t compete with the returning sun and eventually it gives way. It is gradual but if you pay attention you see it happen.
I make a point of noticing that the sky is brighter at 5pm than it was the same time the week before. The morning sky lightens earlier. On Christmas Day the sun is so low in the sky it shines directly into my living room. By the end of January that isn’t an issue. When the chickweed starts coming back and peeks out from the snow in early February I’m reassured that spring is on the way. Snow falls from the branches on our magnolia and you can see the sleepy buds perched there, waiting.
Yes, the cold and snow are coming but the darkness and bleakness are just about over. The sun is coming back. That is indeed something to celebrate.
