February
Things to Notice: The Cold
February is the shortest month of the year and usually brings the coldest weather here in Nova Scotia. I love thinking about contrasts of all sorts, and the difference between cold and warm is a tangible, relatable concept that everyone has experienced. This month, notice the cold; really pay attention. What is your first response to it? Even just thinking about it, now? Are your shoulders hunched and tensed? Did you shudder? By changing your perspective a bit, you can maybe shift from hating the cold and just wanting it to be over to embracing it as the temporary, fleeting experience that it is, just like every part of life. Bundle up and BE outside on a cold day - feel it in your lungs and on your skin. Notice what the cold air feels like in your nostrils and lungs, how your body warms it before exhaling - notice what your footfalls sound like on the frozen ground, the particular quiet of outside in winter. Notice how, as you move, your body generates its own heat and warms from the inside. And then, embrace the contrast when you’re back inside and your body warms - the warmth is all the more welcome after the cold, and is what gives it meaning.
Things to Make
A lovely warming drink: chai is a favourite of mine; with an oatcake, it is the perfect afternoon pick-me-up. There are recipes for chai concentrates online, you can buy a bagged version (I like the Tazo one.) For a quick version of decaf chai, which is a difficult thing to find premade: make your decaf tea (I love Yorkshire Gold) and plop a piece of a cinnamon stick in there. Take it outside on a walk and enjoy the contrasts of cold and warmth.
Oatcakes: I found this recipe through 3191Q many years ago. It is a gem.
1 1/2 cup old fashioned rolled oats
1 cup flour
1/3 cup brown sugar
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup cold butter, cut into small pieces
1/4 cup plain, whole fat yogourt
Preheat oven to 350. Combine oats, flour, sugar, baking soda, and salt in a large bowl. Add butter and work in with hands or pastry blender until you have a coarse meal texture. Stir in yogourt until a soft dough forms - I find I have to tip it onto the counter and gently knead it for it to come together. Pat it out on a floured surface and roll to 1/4 inch thickness. Using the top of a jar, a glass, or a biscuit cutter, cut into rounds. Bake for 15 minutes or until slightly browned. Store in an airtight container. Recipe can be doubled, and they freeze very well. Perfect with a cup of tea!
Hand/lip balm, since your skin might be feeling the winter-ness of this time of year. Measure out equal parts by weight of coconut oil, olive oil, and beeswax. Melt the beeswax and coconut oil over low heat, add the olive oil and allow all of them to melt together. Stir gently, and pour into small jars. This makes a very firm balm; adding less beeswax makes it a bit softer. It’s a lovely gift, and you can easily make a lot - just keep the proportions the same.
Things to Do
Exfoliate and moisturize! It will make your face feel less like a flaky wintry desert. It doesn’t need to be with anything other than a warm, damp face cloth. Wring it out, lay it gently over your face until it cools. Gently scrub your face, all of the way to all of the edges, in a circular motion. Immediately moisturize - a few drops of oil (argan is nice, but you can use olive, grapeseed, almond, etc.) on damp skin, then your regular moisturizer gives your skin a bit of extra love. Try the oil cleansing method - I do it every now and again in the winter and it feels so good.
Watch a documentary to mix things up and put yourself in someone else’s shoes in a different part of the world. It’s so easy to feel like our own little part of the world is all there is, especially this year. I loved Salt, Fat, Acid, Heat by Samin Nosrat on Netflix, and My Octopus Teacher was wonderful.
Have a fire, outside or in, and again - enjoy the contrasts of cold and warmth. Or light candles (over which you can toast marshmallows, by the way.)
Sending you love and warmth this month,
Sherrie