About Early Cold
January 5 - 20
Suddenly things are quiet. The world has gone sleepy, we’re all indoors, and the hustle and bustle of the past several months have been put to rest at last. We might feel a bit hallow during this season, a bit let down. Signs of spring are still far away, and we are well and truly in the thick of winter. A stark, muted beauty overtakes the landscape. We are ready for this period in our lives. We welcome the isolation, giving us a moment to reset and recenter. The world is catching its breath. This period of calm and quiet is necessary for it nourishes all which lies ahead.
Early Cold
Podcast Episode
In the first Season by Season episode of the New Year, Alexis and Kit prepare for the upcoming year while discussing the season of keeping resolutions, visits from snow crows, windy winter weather, and early growing plants that herald the coming spring. Hiro's Corner takes a closer look at the Japanese calendar and the naming of the month of January.
Click here for poems & songs featured in this episode.
Words of the Season
In the Sky
StarWinter Storms
Cold crows
Cold Light
Cold Clouds
In the Ground & Water
Snowdrops
Amaryllis
Paperwhite narcissus
In Our Lives
New beginnings
“Firsts”
New Year’s Resolutions
Coming of Age Day
Plough Monday
Old names for January and "intimate month"
Sense of Space
7 herbs of spring
Healthy Eating
Recommended
Reading
How to Do Nothing: Resisting the Attention Economy by Jenny Odell. This thoughtful book is an excellent way to start the new year as we look both inside ourselves and at the society that surrounds us — and ask ourselves, honestly, what is important in this world and what we should give our attention and energy.
A Year in the Woods: Twelve Small Journeys into Nature by Torbjørn Ekelund
If you feel a little cooped up, read Washington Square by Henry James to remind you of all that can happen within a mere parlor – from love, to loss, and redemption
Wintering: The Power of Rest and Retreat in Difficult Times by Katherine May