The Cold

The Cold

How exactly good it is
to know myself
in the solitude of winter,

my body containing its own
warmth, divided from all
by the cold; and to go

separate and sure
among the trees cleanly
divided, thinking of you

perfect too in your solitude,
your life withdrawn into
your own keeping

--to be clear, poised
in perfect self-suspension
toward you, as though frozen.

And having known fully the
goodness of that, it will be
good also to melt.

by Wendell Berry

I read this poem last week while being sick, and it resonates with me so much this year.

I have had very little winter blues this year, probably for the first time in 8 years.

Lately I have noticed that I am starting to look forward to the warmer season again, and March might be a bit rough to get through, but overall I have been able to actually enjoy the goodness of winter.

"And having known fully the goodness of that, it will be good also to melt."  I love this sentence so much. The joy of the four seasons. It would be hard to live in a place without those.

We have had some exciting news this week. Brad and I get the opportunity to translate a book from german into english. It is exciting, first of all because of the experience and the work that I will have to do mostly, but also because we get paid quite a bit, and that we desperately need. It fell into our lap just like that, with no effort whatsoever. And as busy as I will be in the next month, it will be all worth it for many reasons. 

Also, today I found out that I will have the opportunity for a group exhibit in April and a solo exhibit next January at this fabulous coffee shop. I believe this is a very good reason for Brad to find a job in Saint Paul, so that we can stay here.

And now back to "real" work...