Winter is a time of slowing down, resting, and getting less done. It’s a time of saving up and restoring strength in order have the energy to do what will need to be done in springtime, summer, and fall. When I was little, one of the books I loved was Anybody Home? by Aileen Fisher. I was the type of kid who, without trying, would get virtually pulled into the pictures I looked at in books. (Who am I kidding? I STILL do this!) One of my favorite pictures to get lost in from Anybody Home? was of a squirrel all cozied up inside of a tree. It was sleeping with its long fluffy tail wrapped up around itself like a blanket, covering it up to its nose. Take a look! While the setting of the book isn’t specifically wintertime, I almost always think of this picture in winter! It’s the perfect image of what I feel like doing in winter: slowing down, staying warm, and recharging my energy (in a cozy place...with fuzzy blankets). =)
When temperatures get colder and daylight gets shorter, I get much less done in a day! And...I find myself remembering how much more productive I was - not that long ago - in fall, summer, and spring. And I’m tempted to feel guilty about it. But then the image of that cozy, beautifully drawn squirrel comes to mind...and I remember that the hibernating animals and all of the trees and flowering bushes that surround the house seem slower and dormant right now too. And then I remember: That’s what winter is all about. The trees and hibernating animals feel no guilt about being “unproductive.” It’s winter! Things are still and calm. That's just what they do when temperatures drop. It's not wasteful - it's wisdom. Everyone and everything needs seasons of rest. And you’re no different. Whether it’s actually winter outside or whether your inward self is going through what feels like a winter, your resting isn’t laziness. Your resting and slowness are in tune with your season. So, is it winter for you? Go ahead - hibernate and be cozy! When the season shifts, you’ll be up and about again. No need to rush. Disclosure: If you purchase from links in this post, I may receive some kind of affiliate commission (at no additional cost to you). I will only promote products that I personally use or can recommend without hesitation. Thank you for your support in this way! One of my favorite books is The Magician's Elephant by Kate DiCamillo. I love it because it's a beautiful, poetic metaphor for forgiveness and for the hope of impossibly good things coming true.
As in life, there are impossible things in this story that cause the characters pain and ones that cause hopes and dreams to be fulfilled. One of the characters is a boy named Peter who was told that his little sister had died when he was little. But there's a hint at the beginning of the story that he might have been lied to and that his sister is out there in the world somewhere. In the same town is a woman who has been injured in a magic trick gone wrong, and she has the magician responsible for her pain thrown into prison. Throughout the story, all she can do is talk about the pain he's caused her. Whenever someone tries to have a conversation with her about something else, it's all she can talk about. She's like a broken record, stuck in the pain of her life. And that's another reason why this book is so good. Even though it’s a fictional story, it speaks to the real pain we can experience in our own lives: physical pain, bitterness, and unfulfilled hopes and dreams. Personally, I don't like stories that are sad and have terrible endings. Some people might argue that in the real world things don't always go as planned, and that sad stories with sad endings are needed to reflect that reality. But what about the other reality—the one where, however long from now, someday all the wrongs in the world will be made right? It may be far into the future, but it’s one of the reasons I like stories with happy endings. They reflect the reality that we were created for restoration and a beautiful future. And perhaps we're feeling like the people in The Magician's Elephant, wondering... When will this be made right? Why is this happening? Will the good things I'm hoping for ever happen? The Magician’s Elephant is a beautiful story with multiple characters who experience pain, and there are beautiful endings for each one. It's winter as I write this, and in The Magician's Elephant snow represents hope and change - something good on the way. The winter season seems like a fitting time to settle in with a nice hot beverage, get cozy, put your feet up, and read this book... ...if you could use a story with a happy ending. (Pick up your copy of The Magician's Elephant by Kate DiCamillo here.) Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links, which means that if you make a purchase from links in this post, I may receive some kind of affiliate commission at no extra cost to you. Thank you for your support in this way! You kids are not allowed to go into the woods under any circumstances. When I moved to Connecticut, I had no idea the mysterious and exciting things that had happened just an hour’s drive away from my new home. Well...in this case when I say “happened” I’m referring to the things you experience when opening up a novel and traveling inside. You feel like you’ve been there - that you’ve lived the things you’ve read as though they really happened. And so, in this way, reading the fiction novel Fablehaven for the first time years ago took me deep into the forests of Connecticut...long before I ever met my husband who actually grew up there! And it wasn't until reading it again after moving to Connecticut that I realized the author had set the whole story near Lyme - just an hour's drive from what I now called home. Some books are best read at certain times, and summer has turned out to be the best time to re-read Fablehaven (for the third time in my life)! This magical experience of Fablehaven by Brandon Mull takes place in the forests of Connecticut during the summer vacation of Kendra and Seth, a brother and sister duo from New York. Young Kendra and Seth are reluctantly taken on as visitors (without their parents) by their grandparents whom they barely know (and aren’t even sure that they like). Their arrival at their grandparents’ home in the middle of a forest is just as strange and mysterious as you might imagine it to be. It’s isolated and there are warning signs (literally) the whole way there. When they arrive, there is a short drop-off by their parents and a welcome from their grandpa that is anything but welcoming...not to mention the strange fact that their grandma is nowhere to be found, and discussions about her are quickly dismissed. What seems to be a long, boring stay ends up taking a strange and mysterious turn. This home and the surrounding forest is shrouded in secrets...and has much more going on than meets-the-eye. Rules are established. Rules are broken. Mayhem and fantastical beings are awakened as ancient treaties are broken. As a battle between good, evil, and everything in between becomes a frightening reality, Kendra and Seth are forced to put aside petty sibling rivalries in order to simply survive. Things become increasingly dangerous, desperate, and ultimately hopeless as their worst fears are about to be realized. And then, courage and hope arise from an unexpected place. And it doesn't matter whether I've read it once or three times. The climax of this story culminates in a picture of such beautiful, divine empathy that it moves me to tears every time. Fablehaven is a world of magic, and it will make you look at your own world with different eyes. It turns out that our own world has just as much magic in it as the magical forests in the pages of Fablehaven - if only you have the eyes to see it. * * * Don't miss adding this amazing summer read to your book list! Fablehaven by Brandon Mull can be found here: Fablehaven (Book One) Fablehaven Complete Boxed Set (Yes, there are more in the series! But the first one is my favorite.) Disclosure: If you purchase from links in this post, I may receive some kind of affiliate commission (at no additional cost to you). I will only promote products that I personally use or can recommend without hesitation. Thank you for your support in this way! Sometimes I get lured into thinking that the only cozy seasons are fall and winter. For example, this morning as I poured myself a hot cup of coffee, I realized (with a bit of sadness) that with the onset of summer, my cozy morning routine of relaxing with a hot cup of coffee was soon going to disappear. New England summers in historic farmhouses don’t necessarily come with the luxuries of central air conditioning! So, as you can imagine, hot cups of coffee don’t have their usual calming effect during the summer months. But before I could get too nostalgic, I suddenly remembered the joys of COLD coffee! Ah, yes, cold coffee with cream, you will be exactly what I need this summer! How could I have forgotten you? And the thought of getting to enjoy cold coffee on hot days got me excited about all the other cozy things of summer, and I remembered something important: There is something to enjoy in every season. When I think about the impending hot summer months, I have a choice to make. I can get sad that autumn and the soon-to-follow Christmas seasons are far away, or I can remember that summer brings its own world of things to enjoy: fireflies at dusk, peeper frogs echoing across the fields, choruses of birds in the trees, curious crickets finding their way onto the porch, and the Fourth of July celebration (which includes a book sale - yay!!). When summer ends, these things end, too. But they will be back again the next year, and I can enjoy them once again. And when they go, I'll say a temporary goodbye and embrace the next season and all that comes with it. And isn't it true with life? Every season has something new to love. You will miss it when it’s gone, but then the new season brings with it something completely new and different to love. The seasons come and go in their due time. Let them do their thing while you do your thing: finding what there is to enjoy right here and now, knowing that new seasons will circle around again with new things to love. And if all you can find to enjoy right now is cold coffee, then let it be cold coffee. I understand. Sometimes it’s the little things that are the big things. ;) A very happy summer to you all! * * * Create your own summer coziness with some cold coffee inspo! Check out these tasty ideas to get your own cold coffee joy going: Texas Jack's Famous Cold Brew Coffee Recipes by Dennis Waller Make Mine Cold Brew by Renae Clark Starbucks Cold Brew Black Unsweetened Califia Farms Mocha Cold Brew Coffee Wandering Bear Straight Black Coffee Primula Pace Cold Brew Coffee Maker Disclosure: If you purchase from links in this post, I may receive some kind of affiliate commission (at no additional cost to you). I will only promote products that I personally use or can recommend without hesitation. Thank you for your support in this way! |
AuthorWelcome to The Cozy Corner - your place for all things cozy! Have a look around - you'll find book recommendations, coffee, fuzzy blankets, cozy socks, and inspiration for slowly savoring the seasons. Enjoy! Archives
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