Apricity

In the Latin language, there is a specific word for the warmth of the winter’s sun - apricity. And I quite like that, because oftentimes I can get stuck on the lack of warmth in the winter. My clothes don’t get warm to the touch in the winter as they do in the intense summer sunshine. I don’t seek shade in the winter; rather, I hunker down in the brightest spots, with my multiple layers on.

But, while different than summer, the sun is still the sun in the winter. It still rises every morning, it still sets every evening, and it still brightens our day, often beautifully so when it shines off freshly fallen snow.

So I have a choice. I can get stuck on how the winter sun isn’t like the summer sun, and on all the ways it doesn’t do the same things. Or, I can allow it to be apricity. Still the sun, but accomplishing different stuff because it’s a different season.

And how much could we benefit from allowing things to be what they are instead of getting stuck on what they aren’t through comparison? That friend who doesn’t remember every detail of your life but listens with intensity when you are sharing what is going on. They both offer different things, but they are both friends. Or the job that doesn’t pay as much but gives you more time to chase your other dreams? Or the to-do list that leaves some things off of it but gives you more time for spontaneity and adventure?

There will always be opportunities to address needed changes and shifts, but there may also be times when we need to appreciate what something is offering us in the way and manner it is.

The sun is no less the sun in the winter; it is just offering us apricity, and it’s up to us whether we appreciate it or not.