Frost-Bitten

Even knowing that all 44 of my years have been in Indiana/Idaho/Utah, it has become abundantly clear that I was not built for cold-weather climates. I have been lying to myself every winter. Gritting my teeth & baring it. If there's ever an apocalyptic event that causes the entire world to go into deep freeze, I will simply lay down, huddle in a ball, and pray for the sweet release of death. I. HATE. COLD. Fingers and toes should NOT stay popsicles. Legs should be warm and tanned. Faces should sting from healthy exposure to sunlight, not the slap of frigid air. Eyes should water from life experience- joy, pain, loss, excessive laughter- NOT as a result of cold breezes, sneezes and germs! I am more determined now to save for retiring to a tropical locale! With or without my kookie husband, who doesn't mind the cold, loves to hunt & fish, and secretly gets a kick from refusing to put on a coat when we're "just going out to the mancave." He's clinically insane. 

I miss sunshine. I miss warmth. I miss gentle breezes and the scent of lilac from the bushes in the yard. I NEED the sun. I crave being hot & sweaty- working outdoors with my hands in the dirt, sculpting and pruning my vegetation to make it beautiful & fruitful. I miss flip-flops and shorts, eating popsicles and crunching ice cubes. The whir of the fan in the window, and the chirp of crickets in the yard. These winter days seem eternal; a never-ending drudgery of darkness and cold. If I could just hibernate through it, and hunker down in the blankets and pillows until the beautiful sun beacons with springtime, I would be a happy girl. But alas, duties call. I must soak up the heat from my morning shower & pray for the intestinal fortitude to make it through another bone-chilling excursion into the frozen outdoors. 

Mark my words. One day I will live in a warmer climate. Where constant sunshine and warmth bring my heart joy. Until then, I'll bundle up and begrudgingly muddle through; warming my path along the way with smiles and laughter. Meanwhile, God bless the inventors of the indoor furnace & automobile heaters!

Only 57 more days 'til spring. Only 57. ONLY FIFTY-SEVEN? That's an eternity... Gaaaaaaaaa...