With the holidays behind us and the hope of spring a ways off, you might be feeling the winter blues. This can be a heavy time of seasonal colds, holiday credit card bill realities and already failed resolutions.
With a little determination and a shift in perspective, however, this can also be a time of contemplation on the year gone by and the creation of a solid “green” foundation to build from for the year to come.
In the still dark days and forced flu-induced couch time, there is the opportunity to tuck in and do some reading and research. It makes good sense to follow the rhythm of the season where we can, hibernating as the trees do, storing knowledge in our roots to access all year long.
Audio and secondhand books, online documentaries, library resources and audio books from the free library app, Libby, are all great winter friends. What do you most want to understand at the root level?
On cold nights the warmth of friends and glow of a wood stove can be great low-waste heart warmers to while away the hours with. Instead of online shopping, invest money and time in family and community building. Host a potluck, put an extra log in the fire, and play games and tunes together. Brave inviting a few neighbours, a co-worker, or someone you just met to start weaving a resilient tapestry of support for the months ahead.
What better way to forge a zero waste lifestyle than to tap into the power of the collective? Later down the road when you need to borrow a lawn mower, fix a broken zipper, have someone bring you a nourishing soup, or pick you up from the airport it’s the people you’ve laughed and eaten with who you’re most likely to call on.
Winter getaways are tempting, but there are other ways to seek heat right around the corner. Head to the recreation complex sauna, or treat yourself to an infrared sauna session. If you’re lucky enough to have a hot tub, share it with some friends, something especially appealing when the snow is falling. Clear nights might call for an outdoor bonfire or coziness by a chiminea under the Milky Way sky, or hot chocolate on the couch with your furry friend.
This time of the year is a great for crafting as well as envisioning habit changes. Many of us are now tuning into the power of creating a list of goals, or visual representations of what we are resolving to do, be or have. Vision boards, visualization techniques and simply chatting with friends about our dreams are all great tools for this. After all, what we think about and surround ourselves with, we become.
So, for that matter, crafting and art projects are also inspiring activities. What better way to motivate yourself to greener, healthier, more socially conscious ways of life than making art that reminds you of these goals?
Let’s dive into our winter woes with the expectation of silver linings and see where we end up.
Let’s Talk Trash is qathet Regional District’s waste-reduction education program.
