Unseasoned

This is not an exploration of my visit to a restaurant with poorly spiced soup. It’s my realization of how important the seasons are.

And what happens when I try to fight them.

Imagine you are taking that first morning stretch. You raise your arms above your head and expand in all directions. That is spring and summer for me. Outward moving, energetic, social.

Now imagine you’re curling up for the evening, it’s a bit chilly outside, you want to contain as much heat as possible. You curl into a ball and wrap your arms around your knees. This is fall and winter for me. Inward moving, relaxed, introverted.

These two movements are extremely important. They are balancing, and keep an equilibrium in my life. The movements make sure I am not constantly outward moving, over-stretching myself, literally and figuratively. They make sure I am not stuck in the little ball, becoming stiff and closed off.

Spring and summer are when I meet new people, play in the garden and climb mountains.

Fall and winter are when I spend time with familiar friends, order seeds for the garden and let my body rest.

They each have their own rhythm. Spring and summer are staccato; the notes are disconnected and shortened. Just like my short bursts of activity. Saying hello to this friend, jumping in that lake, dinner out at this restaurant, desert at that stand. Fall and winter are legato; the notes are smooth and connected. I slowly make my way out of bed to greet the day with warm breakfast and hot tea, glide back to my room and contemplate life.

Currently, after the past two winters spent in warm or tropical climates with lots of traveling and meeting of new friends and acquaintances and sightseeing and…

I feel that I have neglected the fall/winter time. I have created a continuous spring/summer staccato. My notes feel scattered, without proper rhythm. I am out of sync with the seasons…unseasoned!

However, a dash of pepper won’t do the trick here.

I am on the hunt to find the proper “legato winter rhythm”

My first step is to put my arms down, and instead wrap them around my knees.

Rhythmic