Happy Spring and New Year's resolutions

... On a very early morning, when my thoughts would not let me fall asleep again.

It never made sense to me that the New Year was 1/3 into the dark and cold winter and that we should make and begin our New Year's resolutions during the darkest, coldest, most depressing time of the year when you mostly just want to wrap up in blankets and hibernate, eat fatty foods, read books and definitely not go out in the storm and rain. And now that I've become self-employed and I work in tune with nature's seasons, winter has become a sort of almost sacred time for me, when there is room for reflection, contemplation, domestic pursuits, cooking, children and of course, like everyone else, all sorts of harmless minor illnesses (Then they're over before the more exciting seasons begin).

Last September, I realised that "sept" means 7. Well, that shouldn't be news to me, since in my youth I lived in France for six months, but it had never really occurred to me before that the names of the months have meaning. Maybe it never occurred to you either? 😊

September = Sept = 7
October = Oct = 8
November = Nov = 9
December = Dec = 10

So September is the seventh month, October the eighth month, November the ninth month and December the tenth month. If you count backwards from these months, you end up with a start of the year on 1 March. The same date when nature has dictated that spring starts.

For me, it makes so much more sense to start the year off at the very moment when nature slowly comes back to life, the time when the first flowers appear and when you can finally feel the life-giving warm rays of the sun on your skin again. March is the month when I get energized, feel active, get the urge to get outside and when I'm itching to get started on gardening and projects.

March 1 is therefore the time when I commit to my New Year's resolutions, full of that first spring energy and ready for a new year.