The break in the weather today was nice.  Really nice.  The truck is stuck in the creek because of all the ice and us trying to get it out before John took another short trip.  Today, it almost reached fifty degrees and I got to come home from my mother’s, where I’ve been staying for lack of ability to leave the holler in an emergency.

I like being cold much more than being hot, and I wonder sometimes if it is part in partial to my being a bit of an introvert.  Winter makes us go inward.  The bustle is not so much and it forces us to spend more time with ourselves.  We renew and we make big plans.  We resolve to do and be things.  We get really excited and then frustrated because we suddenly have lots of things we want to be doing and the weather doesn’t allow for us to do them.  We grow tired of inner conversation.  Then, we get stir crazy.  Then, it is Spring.

I enjoy the little breaks in the weather of Winter that gives you a moment to exhale, to take a fresher deep breath and begin again.  I am enjoying my time this Winter, and I hope the feelings I have gained are ones that I will never lose.  I hope to only grow in them and to go forward with the change they bring.

I have some simple things I will be focusing on this year.  Things that will change my life, my being, my heart, my work, and my basic approach to life.  Hey, it’s about time. 🙂

  1. I’m going to complete my childbirth educator training and classes with Lamaze International beginning in February.  I will become a certified childbirth educator and begin helping the women of my region take a look at all the possibilities and miracles of birth.  I will also become trained to teach prenatal yoga in April and tie that into my work as a childbirth educator.
  2. I will be reading the writing of Rudolph Steiner.  I want to learn about the Waldorf philosophy of education directly from the source and take what I learn to create the experience of education for our girls.  Lately, I’m too caught up in “being” Waldorf as in the examples from the many blogs, books, classes, and things that are Waldorf inspired.  The real “Waldorf” education will be the experience that works and fits with our own family culture.  It won’t look the same as what works for others.
  3. I am learning more about Spirituality.  I am exploring my beliefs and trying to learn all I can about living a life that is tuned in, out, and grounded. 😉
  4. Continue to practice Kundalini Yoga and to learn all I can about it.  This will also help me with number three.
  5. Finish my novel and continue to look for publication for my stories.

It feels good because it is nothing unrealistic like keeping the house in perfect order, or making sure the girls never get their feelings hurt. 😉  It is life in simple.  I’m so excited, I’m smiling as I type.

Photos by Brett Marshall