Winter is coming, with frost and snow starting to blanket the ground.
It's always a relief when I am able to make time to visit my place of land-based learning in the Mill Creek Ravine. Most years, I am dreading the snow and cold, but this autumn has been exceptionally warm. Instead of dreading the snow, I'm actually looking forward to seeing, feeling, and experiencing the wonders that these icy crystals offer.
I am drawn to the way that the snow coats the top of branches and plants. It seems to blanket the ground, cozying the earth in a soft embrace. The snow is still mostly light and fluffy, not hard-packed ice or stinging flakes that come when the winter wind blows fiercely. Those days are still to come.
It's early afternoon, and it seems as though the light is already starting to fade. It makes me nervous and has me wanting more - longer days, more time to see and do, to take things in and to explore. But that's not what the winter seasons offer here on this land. Instead, we get a blanket of snow, and the darkness of long winter nights. I am strongly reminded of a favorite book I read often to my children and the children in my day home, written by Mike Jolley and titled, "I'll See You in the Morning". Phrases from the book arise readily in my mind, and I'm startled that whole sentences are there, whispering to me:
Don’t be afraid of darkness. Don’t be afraid, my sweet
The night is just a blanket That helps the earth to sleep
Creatures great and creatures small Will all be sleeping soon
Under the same blanket… Under the same moon
That's what the snow seems to be, a blanket encouraging the rest and renewal that winter season offers. I stop walking and try to heighten my senses as I tune into the questions we are encouraged to ask ourselves on the land: What is being communicated? How am I perceiving it? How do I interpret what is being communicated? How I can express what I am learning?
What comes to me is surprising and unexpected. Winter is actually a kind of new beginning. Just like a storm and strong rain can wash the earth and settle dust away, winter cold and snow offers a respite from the growing activity of spring and summer. It feels like the hard work has been done, and now we can rest. Sleep is renewal, each night is the start of a new day - not just the end of the old day, but the connector. And that is what winter is in the cycle of seasons, a connector.
I've never thought of winter this way before, as a beginning. As I consider the circle of life, it makes sense that any one point could be the start, depending on your perspective. It's a rich teaching because it is unexpected, and it makes me feel more settled and safe even with the dark coming (this is when the words from the book above rose in my mind). What is communicated to me is that winter is a beginning, and I perceive it by viewing the snow as a blanket, and feeling that the early, long dark nights are too. I interpret the coming darkness and the new-fallen slow as just a blanket, covering the earth, where creatures of all sizes, living and non-living beings, can now rest. Not scary, nor something to be dreaded, but rather like crawling into bed at the end of a long day.
This moon is when I realized why I have been making several peg dolls instead of just one winter count symbol for each moon. Sometimes, just one peg doll cannot fully capture the entire experience or teachings from the land. Other times, like with the leaves last month, the peg dolls need friends as they are never found in nature alone. This moon, I realized that sometimes I might need to create several variations of peg dolls before my creativity mixes with the natural materials to help me express what I am learning in the best way. The little peg down snuggled into a blanket or cape of snow with its eyes gently closed fully captures the teachings that the land has communicated to me this month. I love it so much!
Here's views of them as a group and together. Their hats, or crowns, or hair, are from cherry tomatoes I grew in my garden. The tops were so beautiful I couldn't throw them away! I love how from the top view, the peg doll on the above-right really looks like a covering of snow on a plant spent from summer days bearing fruit.
Ideas for having fun with snow
Snow offers an amazing array of opportunities for deep engagement, play, and curiosity. Below are three all-time favorites to do when we are graced with the blessing of snow!
1 - Make and find tracks
Children of all ages love to discover who may have been poking around in the yard while they were sleeping. When they first arrive in the morning, or after they wake from their nap, we love to get our winter gear on and head out to see if we can identify any tracks! There's many great resources to help with this, including this online booklet. And if you can't find any tracks from birds, deer, mice, or rabbits, you can always make some of your own!
2 - Examine the flakes of snow
Every year at least one child gets drawn into the intimate world and inner workings of the structures of snowflakes. It really is true that no two snowflakes are alike, and when we make time and space to look deeply outdoors we can start to build relationships with living and nonliving elements of the natural world.
3 - Dig in the snow!
I mentioned last moon that every time I do yard work the children are eager to join in, and shoveling snow is no different. However, I've noticed that what they really want to do is dig in the deep piles of snow. This is meaningful, purposeful work that supports big-body play and the growth of strong muscles and bones. In the summer I have to limit their digging to certain areas to protect the grass and prevent holes from popping up like gopher burrows, but in the winter the ground is frozen so there is no limit on the digging they can do! To best support this kind of play, offer real materials made out of wood and metal - not plastic. These tools are sturdier, will last longer, and support the ability to do real physical work without offering the dangers that snapped or broken cheap plastic toys do. As an added bonus, if a real tool is frozen into the ground, if a child tries to pull on it it might actually come out rather than breaking off in their hands!
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