It's cold here this morning. My throat is threatening greater soreness, even though I've been plying it with 3 Beroccas in 12 hours, the juice of 2 lemons, 2 doses of olive leaf extract. There is a daunting heaviness on my lungs that hopefully I have staved off with all of those things. I think I will take my tea steeper and my packet of Neem tea to work and drink that in the afternoon, as well. Not another cold for me. I say nay.

I see, looking at the weather observations, that Mount Dandenong is currently 5.5 degrees. Still, even though it's much colder up there, I would still seriously seriously contemplate moving up there, even for six months or a year. (But central heating would be nice). If it's gonna be cold, you may as well have misty shrouded trees to romanticise the whole experience.

It was so cold last night I wore pyjamas and socks to bed, and on top of my thick doona, my dressing gown.

May always deceives me. I think, "Oh, come on. This isn't so bad!" I am feeling that way right now :) There is a heavy sensuality about Winter. The Winterish things are newly unwrapped for the year and interesting in their novelty. I made soup yesterday (flunked it, can you believe it?), a risotto the night before, comfort food (a tip: if the recipe calls for dry white wine and all you have is champagne, go right ahead. Rocks on).

My art therapist is a winter person. Follows the celtic traditions. Gave me a giant leaf she'd picked, after our last session. Suggested that a good thing to do, coming up to the winter solstice, traditionally the new year in the Celtic calendar, is to dry out the leaf, and then write on it all of the things in my life that I am discarding, whether good or bad, that have outlived their purpose or their time has come to an end. After writing on the leaf, burn it.

Maggie's love of Winter also appeals to me. She loves the inwardness, the closed-offedness, the cosiness. It is a fruitful creative time for her. Hopefully with my creativity more intact than last year, my insanity levels receded (somewhat), and a return to the benefits of light therapy, this Winter can be the same sort of time for me.

There is something to be said for the limiting of choices. Too much choice can create distraction, anxiety. Sometimes being forced to go downtime, makes you realise how tired you are. Revving too hard up in the noise and chaos can remove us from ourselves, send us buzzing around in the cross-winds.

Still. I am missing going barefoot already :)

But all of the seasons have their place. Even the ones that prod me with a bit of trepidation beforehand.