5 Reasons I Will Be Sad to See Winter Go

Winter needs to leave. It's time already!

Even down here in the south some of us are getting cabin fever and feeling the effects of vitamin D deficiency.

I could fill and entire encyclopedia with things that I will be thankful for as spring arrives, but here is a short list of five things I will be sad to bid farewell too as the climate begins to warm again.



1. Always having a good excuse to make myself a hot beverage. I love tea, adore hot coco, and venerate coffee. As I drift off to sleep I think with delight how wonderful it will be to sip coffee eight hours later in a new day. If you offer me something hot to drink I will pretty much always take you up on it. If you want to ensure that I won't deny you the pleasure of hospitality, then offer me coffee, unless of course you got it from a gas station (excluding QT of course). There is nothing so marvelous as holding a warm cup of delight in cold hands on a grey cold day.

2. Wearing scarves. Winter attire is often bulky and tiresome, but I could never get weary of wearing scarves. They are so pretty and cozy. I love sleeping with my blankets and hands up near my face, so to me wearing a scarf is like akin to staying in bed while functioning at a normal adult level through life. Spring, summer, and fall thankfully have their acceptable versions of scarf, but it is not quite the same as cozy crochet nestled between your chest and chin.

3. Making, eating, and sharing soup. My feelings for soup are not quite as strong as they are for coffee, but I do look forward to the comforting sensation of making and eating soup on a cold winter day. A big pot of soup is so easy to share with friends, and can be eaten off of for the rest of the week. Soup is so simplistic but can also be nuanced and can be crafted from almost anything you have in the kitchen. There will always be a special place in my heart for a hardy warm soup, that summer soups like gazpacho will never fill. 

4. Crocheting. I know that I don't have to give up crocheting when spring arrives, but I inevitably do. There are more outdoorish things to occupy my time in the warmer seasons than making extraneous hats, gloves, scarves, and socks. I am starting an Esty shop to sell some of my crocheted things, so hopefully this hobby will become an income source instead of dropping off. As spring comes I hope to expand my abilities into multi-seasonal projects. I have kept my expectations low, as I have a bag full of discarded projects from winters past lurking in my closet.

5. Celebrating winter holidays. The end of winter seems to drag on but he beginning of it is filled with so many of the celebrations that the child-inside-us looks forward to all year: Christmas with its lights, gifts, and such cozy feelings, Thanksgiving with its colors, food, and family, New Years where we get to start things afresh, putting the old behind and celebrating the new. Honestly after January the holidays are pretty lame especially compared to their early winter counterparts, so it is easy to say "come on Memorial Day," but just as easy to get excited again in a few months about winter's return. 

As the robins return and the spring rains drench the lawn, as our arms and ankles are free to be exposed to the sun again... I will remember winter and its wonders keeping their memories alive until the leaves drop yet again exposing the bare branches. 

Cups of Joy

It is so much easier to identify the negative things. How many of us look at our reflections in the mirror only to see the blemishes, the wrinkles, and the lack? I always see pimples on my own face when no one else can spot them. We can so easily be critical and disparaging of our own lives especially in this world of social media, photoshop, and pintrest perfection. I want to see this change in my life. Joy and thankfulness should always be on my lips. 

Recently I was thinking about habits. I don't see myself as a person of habit. I like trying new things, going new places, and I actively and subconsciously resist being predictable. I never drink quite the same drink at Starbucks every time, and rarely order the same thing at a restaurant twice.  

I was thinking about my habits or lack there of because I want to endeavor to make thankfulness active and habitual in my life. One thing that I cannot seem to get through a day without, especially these cold dark winter days, is a hot beverage... actually multiple hot beverages throughout the day. The precious thing about a cup of coffee or tea is the time it takes to make and then drink it. It is a beautiful thing to boil water and then watch as it magically turns into a warming nurturing elixir. It soothes the soul to sit even for a moment and just enjoy the heat of porcelain on your hand and liquid on your tongue. The steam rising to raise your spirits. 

Confession time: I admit I have a habit... hot beverages. 

My gratefulness should be as constant at these mugs of magic. So I am to connect my current habit to the creation of a grateful habit. Join me if you would like, as I take a moment at each cup during the day and let some joy and thankfulness spill over. Essentially this will look like: every time I have a hot beverage I will remember something new to be grateful over. Cups of joy. 

I am looking forward to finding fullness in a life of thankfulness. Though darkness sometimes seems to stifle my soul, it cannot last, will not last. These cups of joy are my little way of piercing the clouds around me with rays of light as I remember His love, grace, and goodness daily. 

P.S. You can follow me on Instagram @sarahcatherinenoel and #cupsofjoy