Tuesday, November 6, 2018

"Why I make room for doom and gloom in November"

If you've read my blog for a while, you will know that November & I generally do not see eye to eye. ;)  Only February ranks lower on my ranked list of favourite months -- November, at least, is followed by December, and Christmas. :)  If you need a reason why I dislike November (and there are many), at the top of my list: it should have been the month my daughter was born (but wasn't).  ('Nuff said?)

Nevertheless, while I'm not a fan of November, I still enjoyed this personal essay by someone who is :)  -- and thought she possibly might have a point. ;)  What do you think? 

Excerpt:   
November is the twilight of our year and a last chance to marinate in everything the preceding months brought. It feels sad because it is sad. Endings are difficult and goodbyes are hard. And November, with its greyness and dampness and waves of endless clouds, forces you to reconcile that what was once alive will wash away. The trees we sat under this summer are sleeping now and the squirrels have begun hiding away. 
Without the acknowledgment of death or of endings, we can’t possibly appreciate the full scope of being alive. Compared to the murkiness of November, even the dullest spring and summer days seem vibrant, beautiful and full of promise. Compared to long and rainy nights, warm evenings spent on patios seem like a rare treat. November, so grey and so sad, gives us a platform on which to appreciate the full scope of our seasons. After all, they say you don’t know what you’ve got until it’s gone.

6 comments:

  1. I love that this article espouses stoicism--the real deal, and not the Pinterest version. The author notes that acknowledging endings is important so we can appreciate being alive, which is the key belief in stoicism. Here's an interesting article I read today, about how Norwegians who live near the North Pole don't suffer from seasonal depression, even though you'd think they would: https://www.fastcompany.com/3052970/the-norwegian-secret-to-enjoying-a-long-winter My take from this is I should stop groaning about the time change. ;)

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    1. Haha!! Thanks for the article! -- I need to send it to my mother (if you think *I* dislike winter...! ;) )

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  2. I can't really relate to this, because our winters are not as long, nor nearly as cold, as yours. But I know what it is like to have a month that is tough to deal with. December used to be my month, despite the start of summer, Christmas etc.

    I do love the excerpt you found. But oh, that last sentence. Sending hugs.

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  3. The excerpt is interesting - definitely a different way to consider grey, cold November. Sending thoughts for this tough month for you.

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  4. Sending you so, so much love. This really stood out to me in the excerpt: "Without the acknowledgment of death or of endings, we can’t possibly appreciate the full scope of being alive." Took my breath away. I hope November is kind to you this year.

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