Winterberries

To my fellow pessimists…

In winter, our world becomes cold and is ultimately void of life.
Green grasses succumb to soft white blankets and robins leave the trees to themselves in pursue of gentler temperatures. There isn't much to do other than stay inside, enveloped in warm blankets, sipping tea, and longing for better days.
In nature's dormancy it seems that the planet has been robbed of all its beauty, and the lack of loveliness puts us in a state of depression; a chilled, tired, tea drenched, sweater wearing depression.
Sunlight has all but abandoned and left us to winter's icy grasp, and as a result, we feel betrayed.
Snow Shovelling.
Slipping.
Salting.
Winter's a demon…cold, heartless and abusive.

However, in the midst of this torture where grey skies reign victoriously at negative ten degrees, there is a remedy that can cure all despondence. It's small and can be hard to find, but whether in the hearts of forests or out in open fields, once discovered it is a precious beacon of hope to those in need.
The ruby glow of winterberries cast against crisp white is a sign that is often overlooked, but is strong in symbolism nonetheless:
Life in the midst of death.
Beauty in the midst of misfortune.
Simplicity in the midst of perplexity.

These modest little berries send us messages, but it's sad to think that we usually only see them in our greatest times of desperation. 
Think about it. If these fragile little berries can survive harsh winters, then maybe they're a sign to us that not only can we survive the winter season, but that we can make it through the blizzards in our lives as well. 

We need to search for the positives in every challenging situation because when discovered, they can bring us great healing. Whether they are happy memories, or certain people that impact our everyday lives. As inconspicuous as winterberries, these moments and memories, whether buried deep inside us or hidden in plain sight, give us something to believe in. They provide us with hope and reassurance that there is peace in the eye of the storm and a light at the end of each tunnel. 
Memories give us something to hold onto so that when we are forced to go through struggle and pain, we have moments of the past to treasure. If we go through life in pursue of these treasures we may find that when tragedy strikes we are stronger. 

If we keep our eyes open, our minds clear and our heart aware, we might just discover our winterberries in the places that we least expect them. 

When Winter Waltzes In…A Horrible Attempt at Free Verse

When winter waltzes in

It's never subtle

However hard it tries to be. 

Sneakily swiping degrees 

And minutes of daylight 

From our warm lovely summers.
Slowly choking life
And colour
Away from the leaves 
That so graciously
Dress our maples. 
Suffocating them 
So viciously 
That they turn red 
From lack of oxygen…
Or so it seems. 
When winter waltzes in
Crickets go to sleep
And flower petals fall
Pink
Yellow
Blue
Against the earth. 
The geese leave for the tropics 
Honking
As they pass in the grey sky above us. 
The nipping winter wind 
Whistles by
Slow and steady
And then stronger
Chilling our bones 
Like ice.
By November 
Summer is forgotten 
Winter is all we can think of.
Ice
Cold
Wind. 
Hot cocoa becomes our only comfort. 
The smooth
Warm 
Silky taste 
Of chocolate. 
The fire in the hearth 
Glows orange 
Red
And yellow.
The crackling embers 
Sparkling 
Flickering
Against the coal.
Thick grey wool socks
Burgundy track pants 
Green fleece sweatshirts 
The fresh smell of pine 
Balsam
And the luminescent light 
From candles in the room. 
When winter waltzes in
These things keep us cozy. 
Protecting us from the cold
That has taken over outside. 
When we look out 
Our windows
That shield us from the air 
We struggle
To see 
A single speck of life. 
Winter has robbed 
Our world of its beauty
The only thing remaining
The baby pink petals 
Of a single
Closing
Primrose
And soon 
Not even this will remain. 
When Winter Waltzes in
And the trees are naked
Marshmallow fluff clouds 
Cover our dark sky
As the wind starts to howl
Against the crimson brick 
That is holding up our houses. 
Tea brewing 
Branches shaking
Dark settling
Street lights glowing.
Flakes start to fall
Gracefully landing 
And shimmering
Sparkling.
When winter waltzes in. 

Snow Day! A Pearl

     Friday was officially my first snow day since I started school and I figured...even though it's not entirely a big deal, that I would write about it for fun...mostly I just want to post a few pictures. 

     I spent the majority of the day inside the house, believe it or not, doing homework, writing and jamming on my guitar and piano until Emmah asked me to join her outside for some fun. I hate cold, but I decided I wanted to take some pictures down at the park as this was the first Canadian snow storm we've had in years. It wasn't a very smart decision, but the outfit I wore outside consisted of jeans, a sweatshirt, crocheted headband, cowl and, since I don't have any snow boots of my own, my sister's zebra rain boots with no socks. In other words, I could have worn a bikini and been warmer. 

     On my first step off the porch I sunk into a giant snowbank, letting out a screech that echoed off of the court. After trudging around the side of the house, Emmah and I continued to trek across the street and down the hill of the park where we were confronted by a chilling wind that froze my cheeks. Emmah, dressed up in appropriate attire, jumped from snow mound to snow mound, hiding behind blanketed evergreens and letting out her usual cries of joy while I froze my fingers off taking pictures of the winter wonderland...I realized then that it was a bad idea to forget my mittens at the house. 

     It took no more then ten minutes before I was frozen half solid, couldn't feel my fingers, and decided that I had to go to the bathroom. Emmah was full of nothing but giggles as I asked her to please come back to the house with me so that I could put proper boots and mitts on. The stupidity of my clothing decisions had both me and my little sister laughing for quite some time, but the best, most hilarious part of the day took place after I changed. Once I was warm and dry again Emmah taught me how to take part in her very own invented activity; sledboarding. 

     I'd seen her do it before, but there had never been very much snow so I never thought it was very much fun. On Friday however, there was more than enough to do it properly and prove me wrong. Sledboarding is Emmah's idea of snowboarding with a twist. She takes her green, plastic sled, props it up on top of a hill, stands on it and then tilts so that she can slide down the mound. Of course, the hills aren't very big, but she has the art of it mastered and can even dance while she does it...while Hollly and I seem to fall almost every single time! Nevertheless, it was a lot of fun and I suggest that you try it sometime! 

     Nothing says family like some quality time snow shovelling, and so to finish off the night, that's exactly what we did. Afterwards, we decided to drive to the movie store, and while out we picked up some pizza for a fun night on the couch. It's short and simple to conclude with this, but all in all it was a  very cool day...literally!

Let the Countdown Begin...with a sprinkle of thankfulness

Our bedroom that now looks like a
gingerbread house. 

     With less than a month left until Christmas, I have to admit I'm pretty excited...but it might not be for reasons you's expect. I look forward more to writing Christmas cards and buying things for other people, than I do to getting lovely little presents on Christmas day...I'm not sure why. It might sound strange to you that whenever Christmas comes around, the first thing that goes through my head is "What can I get for (Insert name here)?" But other than that, I love skating, (which we did the other day) and baking and dancing...and decorating is always fun too!

Lights

     If it wasn't for my incredible older sister, I don't think we would have decorated at all this year, so my extreme thanks go out to her since our house-both inside and out-looks absolutely beautiful. lit snow-covered candles accenting the ebony of the piano, garland twisted around the banister with lights, and red and silver runners on tables here and there. I congratulate myself because I have the privilege of being able to say that I helped out in this enchanting setup. 

     Another thing I'm very proud of myself for is the fact that I actually got around to Christmas cards this year! I bought my own, pretty cards that are sprinkled with sparkles and carefully wrote messages in each of them, which is a huge improvement from last year...when, I confess, I never got around to completing them. Now, all I have left to do is address those of the envelopes that I'm sending and then I can check cards off my mental to-do list! J

       One thing I have yet to check off however, is snow that lands. We've been lucky enough to have some of it sprinkle on us like icing sugar on a cake, and if my story book hopes and dreams come true, we'll have the first bit of it on the ground by 2:45 pm on December 21st so that I can finish fourth period, say goodbye to friends and teachers for Christmas break and then wait to get picked up while snowflakes find themselves in my hair and eyelashes. Fingers crossed, prayers said, that would make my last day ten times better than I'm already anticipating. 

     Finally, I add a touch of thankfulness to this post. 

After another amazing day at school I am exploding with happiful feelings and warm thankfulness for everything! Amazing people that care and make me smile and laugh all day long, for teachers that help me learn along the way. For a family that picks me up after school, for a little spare time to write before I enslave myself to studying for a chemistry test, for dinner downstairs that smells amazing, and for Christmas music playing in the background off of a koala shaped speaker to give me inspiration.

First Snow

Christmas and snow just seem to go together, but this year to some dissatisfaction, the snow decided simply not to fall. Oh well, even though it missed Christmas all together, we were overjoyed when it came the following day. Embracing the frosty air, we took short, brisk walks around the neighbourhood, built our first snowman and even caught a few flakes. Of course it's not cold enough for anything white to stay longer than a few hours so we are, again, back to sunshine and blue skies. I guess I should be thankful that we're not in the middle of a deep freeze, waking up every morning to shovel the driveway and complaining that it's too freezing to do anything! But still. Even though I'll probably be wishing for summer after a mere week of white, I wish it would cover our lawns...for even just a little while.