Enjoying the Little Things...

1:00pm

     There's no way around it-- from August to May, I'm stuck in the Chicago suburbs for the school year. I get restless. This only increases as the time goes on, particularly in the winter time. Travel is hard, and frankly, I'm a baby when it comes to the cold. What am I to do? How am I supposed to get my nature fill when I am trapped in middle-class subdivision-warehouse-department store-chain restaurant-land? The only thing that one could do in this situation is enjoy the little things.
     As I type this out, we are receiving the first snowfall of the year. On most years, the first snowfall comes quite a bit before December 4th. Attribute the lateness to climate change, abnormally mild weather conditions, or coincidence-- I kind of like the timing. There was no snow until the start of meteorological winter, and I'm okay with that. Plus it's a Sunday. I don't even need to drive in it.
     Anyway, I've been able to spend my Sunday morning working on school work and gazing at the falling snow from my bedroom window. This has lead to the strong desire to take a lovely winter walk, during which I will take pretty snow pictures.

5:00pm

     I've returned from my snow adventure. After bundling up, I walked out to a nearby forest preserve. Needless to say, I don't regret it one bit. Nobody else was out there, so all I could hear was the snow (and sometimes far-off vehicles). I've spotted deer and coyotes multiple times in those woods, but unfortunately didn't encounter much wildlife this time. Even though I have walked in that forest preserve many times over the years, the snow made it appear much different. Instead of walking on the trail, I was walking on a path traveled by some sort of small vehicle (which I'm sure wasn't supposed to be back there...) so it gave me a different perspective as well.
     It's little things like these that get me through the winter. No, I didn't travel to some northern land to observe polar bears. What I did was get a small reminder that there is nature right outside my door, even if I have to search for it a little. My winter wonderland can be just a short walk away.
     Don't let the cold and bad road conditions get you down too much. I encourage you to find your own spot to enjoy the winter when you can. Seasonal depression can hit hard in the winter-- observe some snowy tranquility to numb the pain a little. If your fingers are what's numb though, you should probably go inside.