Well, the latest run of Arctic weather seems to have finally broken. And while it’s nowhere near what anyone in their right mind would consider balmy, this afternoon was still warm enough to fire up the kerosene heater and give the garage a thorough going over with a Shop-Vac and a broom. It was starting to become unpassable, so it felt good to be able to get out there and disentangle the log jam of power tools, projects, and scrap wood.

In his teachings on the Medicine Wheel, Grandfather Joseph Rael (aka Beautiful Painted Arrow) tells us that Winter is the season of childlike innocence and teachability. It’s the time when we lay low, share stories with one another, and reflect upon the workings of the past year.

It’s also when we empty the cupboards of the things we’ve put aside to nourish ourselves through the long, cold months of snow and darkness. In doing so, we begin to make room for next year’s provisions, which in turn will carry us through the following Winter.

There’s a lot to be said for this process of making room; not only of sweeping up the dust and remnants of assorted projects and tossing it all away, but of taking stock and nourishing ourselves on the wisdom of our accomplishments; of letting go of the people, places, things, and habits which no longer serve us – grateful for their having kept us going in the past, but recognizing, too, their tendency to keep us rooted there…