Thanksgiving already? I can hardly believe it! It seems like just yesterday I was roasting in the July sun. Now the only thing that will be roasting is turkey! I'm not a big fan of winter. The short gray days, the long dark nights, and the cold weather all make me want to make like a bear and hibernate! Unfortunately, hibernation isn't a possibility. There are jobs we must attend, chores we must do, families we must feed, Christmas presents to buy, cars we must shovel out of the driveway. No, hibernation would not be a good idea. But just because sleeping all winter isn't an option doesn't mean we shouldn't slow down and smell the hot chocolate. Maybe we were designed to hibernate, not in the way bears do, but in a different way. I think winter is a time for rest and reflection. It is a time to look back on the harvest and look forward to the sowing of new seeds next spring. There is still enough daylight to attend to our jobs and daily routines; but the long nights give us ample time to cuddle on the couch with a loved one, pop popcorn over a blazing fire, wrap up in a blanket and read a book, play board games with our video game addict children, and enjoy the feel of hot soup warming the body. Yes, winter can have its perks. Whether you enjoy them or not is up to you. I used to look at the lack of color in the landscape and think thoughts as dreary as the overcast sky. No sunshine? No green? No flowers? How terrible! But now I realize that those things don't die in the winter. No, they simply rest. And after they rest, they come back better than before. The trees have new growth, the flowers stretch their roots in all directions, the increasing daylight is appreciated by all. So don't dread the winter; embrace it, and you will bloom brighter than you ever imagined.