How Will You Choose to Spend Your Time This Winter?

How is everyone feeling this month of December?  Are you looking forward to the holiday season and excited about the colder weather to participate in winter activities outdoors?  

Or are you preparing to hibernate until May like me?

I have a love-hate relationship with this month.  

• I love the fact that everything feels festive and exciting!

• I love the coziness of the winter to curl up with a blanket and chill.

• I love the idea of binge watching tv and spending time with family.

• I love slowing down and going inward this time of year.

• I love to reflect on the past 12 months and envision the next 12 months.

But I do not like that the days get darker and the temperature is getting colder here in Michigan where I have lived most of my life.

I typically set unrealistic expectations for myself that I will embrace the cold, dark days of winter and venture out to experience the fresh air everyday.  Every winter, I say this and I think I ‘should’ do this.  But in reality, I really do not like the cold!

I don’t like the gray skies, I don’t like the slush and snow and dirt, I don’t think I appreciate nature in the winter months.  I have tried and I have set expectations and they always fall short with a lot of judgment and disappointment around my unrealistic goal for myself.

A friend of mine inspired me to lean into the hibernation!

This year, I am choosing to not force myself to to try to embrace the cold, dark days of winter and get outside as much as possible….

Instead, I am honoring my true desire to stay inside and be warm and cozy during these months and appreciate the opportunity to hibernate (like many animals do) and not judge myself for that.

Life is all about choices.  We can choose to force ourselves to do some things, which may cause us to feel disappointed or frustrated if we don’t succeed, or we can choose to embrace what we are resisting and feel in control of our own destiny.

What choices are YOU going to make as the days get colder and darker this winter? I would love to hear what you are choosing to embrace this season!

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