Doldrums

It's easy to see why some people suffer with seasonal disorders, those mental issues that lead them into depressions during the winter months. I think its the lack of bright sunlight and outdoor activity that's to blame. We tend to become housebound in the winter and I can only imagine how difficult it is for people who can't easily get around to deal with snow and ice. Putting on the boots and cleaning off the car can be a real challenge to the most able of us and sometimes its just easier to stay at home. We force ourselves to venture into the cold because we have things we need to do. If the need were not there, well....I'd be tempted to stay inside most the time too.

At times like this I remind myself of my mother. She was a woman of unending energy and she never allowed to weather to slow her down. Even during her last winter she would not give my husband the time to get to her house to shovel her walk for her when it snowed. By the time he worked his way over there she would already have been out cleaning off her car so she could get to wherever it was she was going. He was left to shovel her front walk for the mailman and clean up what she had already done by widening the path and making sure she could get the car out when she was ready to go.

I guess the big difference in the winter is that it takes an act of will to get up and out many times. I'll use my mother's example to remind me as I get older that my own desire to be active and useful sometimes needs to be accompanied by the chutzpah to shovel and sweep my way out the door. Sitting around and waiting for the world to come to me is not an option. And besides, it could be a long wait!

The winter doldrums will soon be over and the sun will be shining brightly again to welcome us to each new day. But for now I'm grateful that my mother taught me the value in being a contributing member of society and not sitting back taking the easy road. The snow is a minor inconvenience.