Lighten up

One of the main bugbears of winter is the shorter days and the lack of sunshine.

Vitamin d is created when our bare skin is exposed to sunlight and is essential for our health, immunity and happiness. if you want to maintain your vitamin d levels then show your skin to the sun as often as you can.

there is some debate about whether this still works through glass, but having spent many a cold winter day lying on a sunny patch of carpet (next to the cat) i can personally attest that any sun in winter feels fantastic. My feeling is that i’m better staying in the warm house and getting more bare skin out, than going outside in the sun all rugged up to stay warm with no skin to be seen. Science be damned – my body knows what it wants.

as for the shorter days, you can moan all you like, but since you’re stuck with it, you may as well make the most of it. in the dark evenings, do all the things you don’t do in summer because you feel like you should be outside making the most of the weather.

Clean out used pots. Paint some up for spring. Mend or maintain your tools. Sort through your seeds. write the great Kiwi novel. Dust off the board games. Take some time to enjoy your other hobbies.

alternatively, save on your power bill by going to bed early with a hot water bottle and a book. winter is your opportunity to catch up on the sleep that seems so elusive in this modern world. we are part of our environment whether we accept this or not. Consider the possibility that we should be going to sleep as the sun goes down, as our ancestors did. whether it’s true or not, it’s a great excuse to escape to a cosy bed on a cold evening.

as you can see, there are no reasons not to thrive in winter. enjoy the warming foods, ignite your imagination with the weather, follow your cat to find the best sun spots, enjoy fresh air when you can, make your own fun, take long hot baths and most of all, allow yourself to rest while your garden does. you’ve earned it.