Merry Christmas! Happy Holidays! We were blessed with a little bit of snow, so it did look like Christmas to me.

 We are experiencing another non-winter by Minnesota standards.  People are divided on that. Some really miss the snow, others are glad the heating bills have been lower.  Most of us are here becaue we wanted to be. Everyone who hated winter pretty much moved out after high school to warmer climates.  I'm thinking of moving north to a more snowy climate.  This wasn't always the case for me.  Christmas used to be the worst time of the year for me, and the days afterward the "dead of winter"  were even worse.  In 1996 I was home alone with my then 6 year old daughter.  Hubby was in Denmark.  It was the winter it hit 46 below zero here , and even colder up north.  I think it might have been my age, 41, or the fact that I no longer medicated with alcohol ( cos of daughter) but I fell to a new low. Luckily I had a friend who was a psychologist, and he suggested a couple of book pertaining to SAD or seasonal affected disorder.  I found nearly all of my symptoms in that book.  It seems many of us, especially those of Nordic  heritage have this condition, which basically makes you want to hibernate in the winter months with low sunlight.  Your sleep patterns are disrupted, and you feel tired and  hungry all the time, and you just can't deal with everyday life.  Depression pure and simple.  I ordered myself a special light that was full spectrum and very bright.  I sat by my light every morning for 30 minutes when I got up. The difference was amazing! I knew I'd found the reason that I felt so bad every winter. The other thing that I did that winter was start the book "the Artists Way" by Julia Cameron , since I was sitting every morning by my light, I needed something to do.  This book required journaling, and had exercises to awaken the artist in me. 

 At that time no one had to tell me my art was dead. It was the fifth year of Rockhard Stoneware, and my job was decorating the pottery.  Tons of it. There were four guys producing the stuff, and I slip trailed about ninety percent of it.  This was very convienient, because It only took me a day or two to  finish off a weeks worth of production by the three guys working down at the partners place which was  a 90 minute commute.  In an average day, and depending on the size of the pots, I would usually do 150 to 200 pieces.  At home, here I shared the finishing work with Paul, and had plenty of time to do the important work of home schooling my daughter.  The guys took the work out on the road selling it all over the eastern US.  Lily and I stayed home and took care of the animals, kept the wood stove going.  Learned how to read and write, and count.  Anyway,  I will always mark that winter of 96 as a huge turning point in my life.  It was the beginning of my healing myself, and although I had no idea of what was ahead, all the things I did for myself at the time helped me survive the next few years.  My bright light, which is shining over my shoulder as I write here at 5:42 am, The Artists Way which not only renewed my creative spirit, but opened my mind and my heart and gave me the opportunity to help others by passing it on......my own spirituality was awakened that winter, and what a wild  ADVENTURE it's been.  DeDe's Wild Adventure.  Later then....

   Please note

     If you have experienced any of the SAD symptoms, lethargy, increased appetite, weight gain,  feeling hopeless, and the symptoms occur in the late fall/ winter,  Do a search on it to find the right kind of light therapy for you. Talk to a professional. My light is large, but my friend got one last year that fits in her purse.