Saturday, December 22, 2007

Bear or Stream? My Winter Solstice

Winter Solstice, the shortest day of the year, triggers hope in my intellect that will hopefully migrate to my heart. It will. It always does...sometime in March. For now, I connect on a deeper level with mother bears who hibernate at this time of year: growling when bothered, wanting nothing more than to climb into my cave and hide from the world.

Until then my electric bill will skyrocket as I turn on every light in the house, including my "happy light" (one of those special lights that make the room glow like the inside of a tanning bed) in an effort to overcome Seasonal Affective Disorder--appropriately acronymed SAD. Is acronymed a word? Probably not.

I don't know whether to consider the holidays my salvation...or a twisted joke. My salvation because they force me out of my cave to interact, to be human, not bear. A twisted joke because that's the last thing I really want to do and I'm still naive enough to believe I don't have a choice.

Whether I actively engage or not, I'll flow through the next few days--maybe as a peaceful stream, maybe as white water clashing against those who innocently stand in my path. Either way, I know a basin awaits to collect me at the bottom and dispense me evenly throughout January and February, where I'll lie in wait for the clearly-sunnier days of March.

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