I am not a winter thriver. I wish that I was. Those of you who thrive in the Winter please share your secrets. I am a Spring, Summer and Fall girl. I was born and raised in Southern California where temperatures rarely dip below 60 degrees so my threshold for cold temperatures is very low. I moved to the East Coast roughly 14 years ago and while I love the variety of seasons that I now get to enjoy, winter is still my least favorite. I am currently typing this with thick fuzzy socks on my feet, a heavy blanket on my lap and still my hands and feet are ice. Brrrr...
To top it off, we have had more gray skies and rainy days this January and February than I can ever recall having since moving here. I am feeling great empathy for people who live in Seattle and areas that can count on months of moody skies every year.
I was telling a friend this week, that I feel like our strange weather this year seems fitting for the times that we are living in. Still battling a world-wide Pandemic. Isolation from friends and family for nearly a year. Everyone home, all the time. Claustrophobic houses. Then add to it the political and racial tension, division and hatred. It's like our homes are crowded kettles, that have been strategically placed over a blazing camp fire. It's getting hot in here! So why not throw in perpetual rain, cold and gray skies to intensify the feeling of the walls closing in.
I know well enough that this is just a season. It will most certainly pass someday, just as all the seasons before it. I hope you know it too. Hang in there friends.
Another contributor to the blazing fire under the kettle is Social Media. On the one hand, I am very grateful for it. It has made a way for me to keep in touch with so many friends and family members. It has also been a fun source of inspiration. I love following decorators, people that love Jesus and shine their light and kind, down to earth influencers. I don't mind when people share their differing faiths, viewpoints, lifestyles etc. but, I very much do mind when people are attacking, bullying and hate filled towards people who believe differently than they do and this goes for all sides of every argument.
Something that I have observed and found to be very interesting is how wildly differing people's views on hatred are. I have one friend in particular who regularly posts her hatred for Republicans, conservatives, Christians and especially Donald Trump and anyone who supports him. According to her, people who support Trump are no different than Nazis. Many agree with her. Maybe in some cases, there is even a shred of truth to how she feels but, is it true that all conservatives or people who voted for Trump are no different than Nazis. Absolutely not. This is false and a very vicious, narrow-minded accusation. She is allowed to make these comments regularly. She has never been censored or removed from social media. Truthfully, while I wish she would spend more time hugging Jesus and less time hating people, I do not believe it is my right to revoke her freedom of speech, nor force her to hug Jesus. Though her words are vile in my opinion and she essentially sounds like a Democrat Trump by her own definition of what she despises about him, I believe that she has the right to express her opinions. People can choose to listen to her or not. I see that her rants are a way for her to diffuse the rage that she is feeling. She hates Donald Trump as many do. Her hostile posts are a way for her to make her voice heard, and to feel in control when the world feels like it is spinning out of control. That is where I can relate to her and find compassion for her. I can understand how she feels even if our perspectives and approaches are very different. This is where humanity is found. In fighting through the wreckage to find the good in another soul and building a bridge there.
Since I tend to be more conservative in my political views, it can feel personal (especially when I forget to keep my armor on), when my louder liberal friends are daily posting their disgust for anyone who believes differently than they do. Hi, remember me? Someone who has differing beliefs than you and yet loves you dearly. However; also true, is that I may not even notice that many of my outspoken conservative friends are doing the same thing to my liberal friends. Bashing them ruthlessly. It's easy to be blind to hate when it speaks our own rhetoric or language and doesn't challenge us in any way. I am most certainly guilty of this. It is nearly impossible to look at a differing perspective without filtering it through our own biases. Therefore, we rarely see anything clearly. Everyone is so angry. Everyone wants to be heard. Everyone is right in their own eyes. (Proverbs 21:2) What we feel, and expressing it at any cost, is more important than loving our neighbor. Thanks to social media, everyone has a platform (except for those who have been censored) and it is SO NOISY now. It's getting much harder to hear Jesus' still small voice through all of this noise.
Forgive us Lord, help us to hear you and please heal our land. (Isaiah 6)
I have good news for Winter wilters, in only 36 short days, it will be SPRING! Hallelujah! Warmer days, sunny skies and beautiful garden flowers are on the way. Keep pressing on. Keep shining the light. Keep hoping and keep the faith.
Love to you all,
Casey
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