This post was originally published on November 30, 2021.
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Here we are again! The earth has made another full rotation around the sun. The magic of the twinkling lights surrounds every task we set our hands to. Mariah is reaching those Christmas whistle tones. Tea is constantly brewing while the cider and wine are mulling!
I’ve mentioned before how I actually not so secretly love when it gets darker earlier. To me, the shorter daylight hours usher in more hours that are meant to be spent under blankets, drinking cocoa, wearing big fuzzy socks and shuffling around cold wood floors in my slippers.
I love a good scarf and hat duo. I love snuggling into the couch and watching tv while wrapped up in a soft fleece blanket. I quite enjoy the first turning on of the heat in the car and defrosting the windows in the early morning chill.
I’m a New England girl through and through, tossed with a bit of old Viking!
Don’t you find it just magical gazing into the lit-up bustling places around town as you’re passing by? Isn’t it just the best to get your favorite hot Starbucks, wrap your mittened hands around it, and drive around looking at all the Christmas lights? Isn’t it even more wonderful to come home and curl up between flannel sheets and drift off to sugarplum dreamlands?
*Contented sigh*
I feel like a lot of what hygge actually consists of is a state of mind. And that state of mind means slowing down. It’s a state of mind of being present: observing, recognizing, enjoying and quieting. It’s gratitude and solitude. It’s the comfort of silence and being with your own thoughts. It’s the state of mind where you allow yourself the freedom for thoughts to come and manifest or go with ease.
Hygge is finding loveliness and pleasure in the simple things. This is my list of those things for this season:
The way the late afternoon sunlight gleams across a wooden floor.
Pausing to gaze at the early morning light shining through the trees.
The path a leaf takes as it floats down from it’s branch.
How geese fly in formation south to their winter home.
The crunch of leaves and then the crunch of snow.
The heaviness of a down comforter.
The sting of piping hot water on frozen toes.
The radiance of a crackling fire.
Lights dimmed low in favor of the soft glow from the Christmas tree.
The crisp night air.
A clear sky illuminating Orion’s belt.
Frost on the windows.
A frozen and frigid beach.
The merry and bright of the activities that bring you indoors.
Roasting all the vegetables.
Warm comfort foods.
The chimes of laughter within a group of friends.
The giggles of littles.
And the snuggles from those littles.
What are some of your favorite hygge moments this time of year brings?
