We've moved from summer into fall and though winter is still a few weeks away, the weather and landscape feel wintery. I haven't read it yet, but the book Wintering: The Power of Rest and Retreat in Difficult Times by Katherine May speaks to the way we go inward. When we think of the winter season, historically we would need to go inward and seek shelter to survive the conditions. We'd have harvested our crops and prepared for a season that would be very different than our summer season.
Some folks love the ways they can enjoy the outdoors in winter; they come alive after the wilting heat of summer. But from a survival perspective, our needs are different and require us to accept some hardship of the season.
When we're preparing for the next... something different than our 'right now', I wonder about how to care for the anticipated challenges. There are the practical preparations, such as the stuff. When we think about moving from pregnancy to parenting, this would include the baby's clothing, diapers, nourishment for parent(s) and carseat. Maybe you're preparing for your emotional health needs and trying to find ease in the transition. In this case, you may be planning for helpful visitors to care for you, your home and your baby or scheduling out appointments with your therapist. You may be finding groups and professionals and creating your resource list so you know when meetings are taking place, contact info for your local resources or online resources and looking into which books or online resources you may turn to when learning about and experiencing parenthood and the 4th trimester.
Regardless of when your baby is born, you will turn inward. More than likely you'll feel inclined to do so before your due date. When you're healing from birth and learning how to care for your baby, you will find that slowing down becomes a necessity. And if the thought of slowing down feels frustrating, remember it's just your 'right now'.
Some folks love the ways they can enjoy the outdoors in winter; they come alive after the wilting heat of summer. But from a survival perspective, our needs are different and require us to accept some hardship of the season.
When we're preparing for the next... something different than our 'right now', I wonder about how to care for the anticipated challenges. There are the practical preparations, such as the stuff. When we think about moving from pregnancy to parenting, this would include the baby's clothing, diapers, nourishment for parent(s) and carseat. Maybe you're preparing for your emotional health needs and trying to find ease in the transition. In this case, you may be planning for helpful visitors to care for you, your home and your baby or scheduling out appointments with your therapist. You may be finding groups and professionals and creating your resource list so you know when meetings are taking place, contact info for your local resources or online resources and looking into which books or online resources you may turn to when learning about and experiencing parenthood and the 4th trimester.
Regardless of when your baby is born, you will turn inward. More than likely you'll feel inclined to do so before your due date. When you're healing from birth and learning how to care for your baby, you will find that slowing down becomes a necessity. And if the thought of slowing down feels frustrating, remember it's just your 'right now'.
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