So for the majority of the day my step daughters and I stayed in our pyjamas, with the heater on. Could it really have been less than two weeks since I was wearing a t-shirt and shorts, soaking up the warm daytime sun?
As the weather takes a turn for the worst and winter looks like setting in, the way we live our life also shifts. The change in season provides an opportunity to wind-down from the hectic pace of the summer. With shorter days and less daylight hours, we feel less inclined to socialise and be active outdoors and more inclined to spend quiet time indoors.
And in many Victorian households, the TV will be tuned to the AFL (Australian Football League). While a few professional and very fit athletes are happy to run around in the cold air of the football oval on a Friday evening, a much larger majority are happy to spectate from the warmth and comfort of our couches!
Is this really what happens though when the seasons change from summer to winter? Do we really slow down the pace of our lives? Do we take advantage of the opportunity that the seasonal change provides for us to rest?
I don't think so.
I don't think so. I think that the hectic pace of work, school, study, socialising with family and friends, maintaining a house, playing sport, going to church and doing a hobby continues. We are just as busy. We demand just as much of ourselves.
For a long time I have believed that you can 'borrow' from your body but you can't 'steal'. Meaning that while our bodies will allow us to keep up the hectic pace of life at times, if we don't willingly take the equivalent time to rest (at some stage down the track) our bodies will certainly enforce this rest upon us through various illnesses. The concept of a season for rest works perfectly with my theory!
Many animals hibernate during winter months, providing themselves with a forced rest and significant change of pace. I'm sure for the hectic mums (and dads) amongst us the concept of hibernation sounds just divine!
In Ecclesiastes 3:1, the Bible says "There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under the heavens."
I believe we need to take advantage more of the ebb and flow of the seasons, and enjoy the opportunity for times of rest (guilt free!), along with the opportunity for time to do all of the other things that God speaks of in Ecclesiastes: laugh, weep, dance, love, be silent, search, embrace, etc.
I will be challenging myself this winter season to make sure I take the time I need to rest and rejuvenate.
What do you need to do in your life as the seasons' change?
Merewyn Foran is married and a marketing director of a not for profit homelessness agency in Melbourne.
Merewyn Foran's archive of previous articles can be found at www.pressserviceinternational.org/merewyn-foran.html