In the bleak midwinter, frosty wind made moan,
earth stood hard as iron, water like a stone;
snow had fallen, snow on snow, snow on snow,
in the bleak midwinter, long ago.
That poem, written by Christina Rosetti in the 1800s, paints such a stark picture. Earth hard as iron. Water like a stone. Bleak midwinter.
Do you ever have winter like that? I do. The cold is so raw that it eats into your skin. It eats into your soul. Everything feels brittle. Hard. If that isn’t enough, the wind is howling like a freight train, rattling the house.
Sometimes it isn’t quite so cold, but the snow piles up. And up. And up. It doesn’t melt in between. It only compacts from the weight. And we trudge through it, try to plow it out of the way, and dream of spring, which feels like an eternity away.
William Shakespeare began his play Richard III this way, “Now is the winter of our discontent, made glorious summer by this sun of York”. According to Phrases.org, “this phrase lays the groundwork for the portrait of Richard as a discontented man who is unhappy in a world that hates him”.
Whew. The winter of our discontent. We’re not talking about the weather, but about a coldness in Richard’s soul.
Do you ever feel that winter in your soul? I do.
Sometimes it’s the piles of snow on top of one another. Frustrations. Failures. Misunderstandings. They pile up like the snow at the end of the driveway, turning into slush and then cement-like ice. Making it difficult to get in and out. Trapping me in my house.
Sometimes it’s the bitter cold. The winter of my discontent. Anger. Bitterness. Judgement. Biting and sharp, causing frostbite on my extremities and in my heart.
And then there’s the bleak midwinter. Impatience. Inability to see anything but winter. To remember that there was a time before winter or that it will eventually end in spring.
Is there a way to hold spring in our hearts? Yes there is.
How?
By finding the beauty in winter. In summer. In fact, in every season.
The snow is beautiful, covering up the bare, brown ground. The sun sparkles like diamonds, reflecting the ice crystals that make up the snow. Our house feels warm and cozy, sheltering us from the frigid air. We make roasted squash, and comfort food. Winter is beautiful.
Bleak midwinter? Yes. And no.
Beautiful winter? Yes, when you have eyes to see. When you embrace the moment and really live. Even if your earth stands hard as iron, and the water is like a stone, there’s beauty.
Stop. Look. Find beauty in this moment. This day. EVERYday.
How do you embrace the winter-moments of your life? Share below.
I always think of a positive outcome and remind myself that all problems have a solution. I celebrate the freedom and happiness of the solution that will come in due time. I always pray for wisdom because I have leaned that many of our problems are due to a lack of wisdom. The warmth of his will melt all of the cold around me. I may still have snow around me but I will know that spring will be here shortly.
So poetically put, Edwin. And I love how you say that all problems have a solution. That would certainly melt the cold of winter. Is there one particular recent event where this approach has helped?
Absolutely. I had been in a very long and draining battle with an agency that was not doing it’s job in helping a family member of mine. Through persistence, prayer , connecting with the right people and A LOT of podcasts like yours to encourage me I am seeing the fruit of our labor,