Winter's Interlude

​The Christmas season has come and gone.  No more twinkling lights to brighten the evenings.  We’ve moved into January – a new year and a new decade!  So many folks start the New Year off with heartfelt resolutions of how they plan to improve their lives, their health, their jobs, their finances.  By mid-January, however, the exhilaration and zeal with which we took on these resolutions have perhaps begun to fade.  Hitting the gym gets replaced with grabbing the snow shovel as January’s workout.  The refrain “Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow” becomes “Here comes the sun” as we dream about spring blossoms and warmer days.  We tend to think of these winter months between January and the end of March as simply an interlude between Christmas and springtime that must be endured.  In fact, the third Monday in January has become known as “Blue Monday” – the most depressing day of the year!  

As we move into a new decade, it really highlights for me just how quickly time flies!  I don’t want to wish 3 months of each year away, dreaming of dashing out the door in flip flops instead of winter boots and all the other gear needed to stay warm and dry.  I’ve decided to take a kinder and gentler approach to new year/new decade resolutions. 
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It started with taking down the Christmas decorations.  I always miss the soft glow of the lights on the tree.  So this year, when we took down the tree, we replaced the warm atmosphere created by the tree lights with beeswax candles.  Not only do we enjoy their beautiful glow, the candles are eco-friendly and sustainable, giving off a lovely honey scent while they purify the air.  The negative ions that are released when burning a beeswax candle reduce indoor pollutants such as dust, pollen and even mould!  The more energy-efficient we make our homes, the more pollutants build up during the winter months when everything is shut up nice and tight.  You may find that burning beeswax candles not only benefits your mental health, they might even reduce symptoms of allergies and asthma.  Just be sure that you are using 100% beeswax candles with 100% cotton wicks.  (Photo courtesy of Honey Candles.  You can find their candles in our Knit Pickers’ studio.)

Every single year, I say I’m going to find a better balance between my work life and my personal time.  This can certainly be a bit of a challenge when your workspace is in your home.  It’s not an area that can be closed off at the end of the work day… you know - out of sight, out of mind.  I walk through the office and workspace each time I move from the living room to the kitchen!  The other challenge is that I truly do love to knit and weave!  I have learned, however, that as much as I love my work, I do physically need to take a break to avoid back strain (a common problem when warping a loom or spending too much time weaving) and carpal tunnel issues.
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My solution?  First of all, I’m getting rid of the idea of “work/life balance”.  It’s all just life!  I’m paying more attention to what my body is telling me.  If I need a break from weaving or knitting, I can always enjoy some brisk fresh air, stepping outside to clear the snow off the deck and parking pad.  Rather than looking at this as a dreaded winter task, it is what “recess” was when you were a kid – a chance for some physical exercise as well as a mental break!  When winter evenings descend, it’s time for another change of pace.  Time to put away the work projects, pick up my personal knitting and move into the living room.  Feet up, cozy throw to keep me warm, fur baby (or babies) on my lap, candles glowing.  It makes me pause and reflect that life really doesn’t get much better than this.

​So winter’s interlude – that period of time between Christmas and spring – has now become my own personal Winterlude!  Time to enjoy a bit of solitude and the amazing silence of a winter’s night in rural PEI.  (Photo by my talented sister Catherine McEachern.  Available to purchase in the Knit Pickers studio or on our website.)