These weeks of winter have been warm, but there is dissonance between the sun on my skin and the cumulous coverage of my soul. But in this, there are small and sweet rhythms, soft remedies that might take some time to reveal their strength. I lean in, letting the Lord use them as he will to heal and comfort in the griefs of this season. Here is a little list of my rhythms of remedy:
Heartwood Mondays (and sometimes Wednesdays. And other days..)
Heartwood is a coffee shop, but it is more like a living room, though a very public living room I guess. When I really pay attention, I can taste the love in my latte or the care in my croissant. The faces are friendly, and the quiet mornings reading there and walking down the main street of Chagrin Falls are moments of stillness I linger in as long as I can.
Colored Lights
A call back to childhood, an old, simple way to bring Christmas joy to our little room in our house in Bedford. My mom was always giving us beauty, even when it was a string of colored lights for the dark nights. I am letting them linger long into this season. I may never take them down.
Pen + Paper
Though not new, my gratitude is renewed for the scratchy slide of a pen on paper. For the folding of thoughts into notebooks, the inception of ideas in ink. Whether journaling, penning out poems + psalms, or writing letters, I am leaning into the tactile act of writing down even what slivers of sense I can tease out of this tangled heart.
Little Lamp
A dear friend gave me a little oil lamp for Christmas, and its quiet, cheerful light has been a friend. In a season where focus is difficult, I am drawn to the flame like a moth in the summer, settling in close to light. I can sit at my desk longer, stay in focus longer, encourage by the steady shining of this lamp.
What rhythms do you lean in to in seasons that are heavy? What rhythms do you keep in seasons of plenty?
I'd love to listen along to beat of your days.
with joy,
karly alexandra