Have you been getting them too? Pictures sent from family and friends up north to document in living color the amazing amount of snow they are experiencing this winter – especially in the mid-sections of the country. Social media adds to the show with pics or videos like the utility worker strapped to the top of a snow laden, ice-coated pole trying to restore power in the frigid temperatures with the meme “the most valuable linemen are not in the NFL” or the adorable pup bundled in a buttoned up coat and fur hat with ear flaps pulled low while riding atop a toy snow plow in someone’s back yard with piles of snow and barren trees in the background. The state of Virginia wants its citizens to know that their crews are ready when the anticipated bad weather hits. Or perhaps the best of the lot – the giant pandas frolicking in the freshly fallen snow at their new home, the Smithsonian’s National Zoo in Washington, D.C. They could not be happier – their joy at playing in all that white stuff is contagious! If you haven’t seen it, google watch-giant-pandas!
Our reaction to the realities of winter varies, whether it is 5 degrees or 50 degrees outside. It all depends on where we are, what our situation is, and what our past experiences might have been. And the irony of my checking in with family to validate their safety when it is usually them checking on me during hurricane season isn’t lost on me either. Everyone has bad weather … different parts of the country at different times of the year … but none of us are immune from the cumulative effects of a few of these days. It slows us down, often keeps us at home, interrupts our plans and creates hardships that seem to pile on top of whatever else is going on in our lives.
When winter happens, whether it is from bad weather or other devastating life events, it often demands us to stop, assess our situation, select possible actions or just do nothing at all but regroup around something different. I have never dealt with bad weather very well – my neck gets tight, my shoulders hunch, and I tend to hunker down against the prevailing winds. Everything slows down as I contemplate my next move. I admire people who step up, face down adversity, and boldly take steps to conquer the heartburn at hand. They strap on their warmest armor, climb up the frozen pole, and with whatever implement they happen to have in hand, in short order engage at such a level that it looks like they have been doing so for years. They have it all under control.
The severity of winter, and our resilience to survive it, is different for all of us. As caregivers, we are getting used to storms, but their arrival and duration differs every time. Our ability to withstand them, restore normal, and move on varies based on so many different factors. We bring our own life experiences and resources to each problem we try to solve. I like the way Irish poet and author John O’Donohue addresses it in his book To Bless the Space Between Us: A Book of Blessings.
This is the time to be slow,
Lie low to the wall
Until the bitter weather passes.
Try, as best you can, not to let
The wire brush of doubt
Scrape from your heart
All sense of yourself
And your hesitant light.
If you remain generous,
Time will come good;
And you will find your feet
Again on fresh pastures of promise,
Where the air will be kind
And blushed with beginning.
That new beginning may just bring with it a reason to frolic in the latest version of normal and we will find joy and laughter there. We have survived another storm, and the next one will have a newer basis for comparison. It is all relative, as we compare it to our most recent and toughest ones to date! After all, “no winter lasts forever.”
UP FOR DISCUSSION: How are you dealing with this winter? As a caregiver, over time are you becoming more resilient? How do you react when winter brings its latest storms? Please share your thoughts with us.
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