Six Feet Under The Snow Part Two

“Stop whining!” – Arnold Schwarzenegger

Hello, world!

I bet you guys thought I’d start a winter survival guide with a clever quote from Albert Schweitzer or Viktor Frankl or Marcus Aurelius…not this time. The reason for this is that sometimes the most profound wisdom is also fairly mundane..but I digress.

Winter is an emotionally stressful time for many people. From driving difficulties to a lack of sunlight to the lack of being able to walk on a beach comfortably, it all adds up to a crash course on stress. However, as requested, I will offer a crash course on stress relief for the winter. As different problems call for different answers, stress relief during this time has to be specially suited to it. We know that many generations have survived harsh winters, otherwise we wouldn’t be here. Now how did they go about it?

First part, as always, is to stay focused. Much of our stress arises from a lack of ability to stay focused on what’s REALLY at hand. If you can keep your goals in mind and know how to complete them, generally, everything flows smoothly from there. Whether you’re driving or shoveling, keeping your mind on the task at hand allows you to complete it without drifting to thoughts of when winter will end or that pain in your arms from all the heavy lifting. This is, in my experience, the most crucial part of dealing with the season.

Secondly, remain hopeful. Hope is a powerful thing, and can drag us through just about anything. Realizing that Spring is just a few weeks away always keeps me happy through winter. It’s not good to keep posted in front of the calendar all day, or stare at the clock, or sleep the time away, but it’s sometimes fun to keep a tally of days until that wonderful time of the year finally arrives. I try to keep a tally of weeks, myself, until spring, or do it bi-weekly(when you do it by pay-periods, for someone who gets paid bi-weekly, all time seems short, for some reason). Currently, one month and twenty days, or about seven weeks, or forty-seven days until we get to the first day of Spring.

Third, and last, but not at all of least importance, always find meaning in your experience. Recently, I did a post on becoming involved in life, and I meant this by it, amongst other things. If you can find a meaning to getting through the winter, even if it’s just getting through it, itself, you may find that surviving happily will come to you as a second nature. Even if “having fun” was an essential meaning for you, you may find yourself extremely successful in that endeavor.

Winter, as an experience, can feel quite bleak and meaningless. However, if you set your mind to it, you can find a deeper meaning in just about everything. This isn’t to say that I’m advocating a force of fate is at hand(and it’s not to say that I’m NOT saying that, either), but that you can very easily find your own meaning in things, second by second, minute by minute, hour by hour, day by day, etc. If you’re finding your experience too dark, ask what the meaning of it might be, and even if it’s just crossing to the end of that tunnel, I promise that your experience will be easier.

For those of you who need extra help, my services are available on a one-on-one basis, over phone, in person, or by e-mail. My e-mail is nspmutantreggae@att.net, if you need more information.