Even in Winter - you are alive

Winter can be hard.

At Winter Solstice (21st December) I have found myself drawing on the wisdom of bare trees,
to their silhouettes,
to their bare, branching outlines against the sky.

Stripped back.
Unadorned.
Honest.

In winter, trees do not pretend to be what they are not. They release what they cannot sustain. Leaves fall. Growth slows. Energy is conserved. Nothing is wasted.

And yet they are not dead.

They are profoundly alive.

Their shape tells the story of where energy once flowed, where light was found. Not in straight lines, but through exploration, branching out, testing pathways, adapting to space and obstacles.

Winter reminds us that life does not always look expansive. Sometimes it looks like simplification. Like a pause. Like restraint. Like choosing carefully where energy is spent without apology.

And that, too, is wisdom.

Nature know the art of subtraction.

It can be difficult to name what drains us
or to admit that something drains us
or to recognise that we may feel trapped inside the very thing that is costing us life.

I don’t have solutions here,
Only an invitation to notice.

Where is vitality and life still flowing - even if slowed and gone underground?
Even if hidden?

You are alive.
Even now.
Even in winter.
Even if hibernating.
Even if stripped back to the bare essentials.

Trees remind us that life does not disappear in Winter, it retreats, concentrates, waits, goes within.

Winter trees remind me you can’t judge aliveness by outward appearances. The quality and substance of a life is not measured by how impressive we look to others. There are many ways to look successful and still feel utterly cut off from our truest selves, our soulfulness, our essence, our vitality and aliveness… it can leave us feeling empty and praise vacuous.

True life, vitality, a quality of aliveness, is an inner adventure and expansiveness that flows through us, often inspired by others and naturally flows to others through;

Creativity and imagination.
Courage and love in action.
Movement and connection.
Sharing, generosity and kindness…

A trophic cascade of aliveness and meaning, changing the landscapes both within us and and around us.

Winter keeps me coming back to ask the question, what really matters here?

So Winter asks us gently:

Where is life, vitality and love flowing in you?

Can you see the evidence of its flow in the past? How has it shaped you?
Where is life still moving, flowing, exploring however quietly, slowly, tentatively this winter?

At Solstice, at the longest night, just before the light begins its quiet return, take a moment to reflect. To listen to the wisdom of the trees, to recognise your own aliveness, even in struggle, and to consider what you might release and focus on, so your energy can flow toward what gives you life.

To ponder more and take a pause at Winter Solstice - you can book onto my Winter Solstice Online Retreat 21st December 4-6pm. Join live or receive recording in your inbox to listen back in your own time.