This year I'm not complaining about Winter, here's why...

I have decided that I am no longer complaining about weather. I know I know, you're shocked and appalled and wondering what the heck you're going to talk to me about right?!  It is so interesting to me when people say things like “Crazy weather we’re having eh?” or "Ughh it's so cold!" I mean honestly if we all had a dollar for every time someone said this to you or you said this to someone else you would probably be able to retire early or at the very least take a pretty great vacay no? 

Here’s the thing, even though we have decided that as Canadians we “bond” over the weather chit chat, it actually reinforces that negative loop in our brains. Humans have on average somewhere between 20K and 60K thoughts in every single day. Even if they are thought fragments or just an image that pops up in your mind, that counts towards that overall number.  I don’t know about you but the weather comes up at least once or twice a day in conversation with others and so added up over time we spend a lot of our thoughts and time on the weather. 
Dr. Rick Hanson says that we are hardwired for negativity. Our brain did this thousands of years ago for survival. So, okay it might be an ancient response to complain about the winter weather because yes thousands of years ago it really could have been a survival situation if we weren’t properly prepared. But now? Now we have peppermint mocha lattes, ugg slippers and gas fireplaces to get cozy with. It’s really no longer a matter of survival on a daily basis for most of us (I’m willing to assume that if you’re reading this you have adequate shelter in these winter months and of course I’m not talking about freak storms that actually do threaten our well-being in an acute way.)
If we want to work towards a more positive way of life (and I know I do!) then we have to be willing to get off of the “weather complaint” band wagon. It’s such a simple topic of conversation that so many people use as an ice breaker which is why I think that it becomes such a force of habit. But imagine if we could use other topics of conversation instead? Imagine if we asked someone instead “what do you like to DO in this weather?”, you might just be surprised by the answers that you receive.

In fact, even those of us who are guilty of weather “group think” complaining may own a pari of skis or snowshoes which indicates to me that at some point you decided that you weren’t just going to make the most of the season but that you were actually going to give an honest effort towards enjoying it. Imagine…enjoying winter weather! 
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Danish people have a saying that “there is no such thing as bad weather, only bad clothing.” If we could embrace this principal then we could probably be better able to enjoy the cold or damp weather that comes our way. In fact if we could get outside more often and move our bodies and feel comfortable while doing so then we can also increase our immune system’s ability to fight off winter viruses. Yes it seems like a real investment when purchasing high quality outer wear but I have personally been blown away by the difference and have been able to more comfortably enjoy outdoor time in colder temperatures. 
Here are some suggestions to enjoy the winter weather this year:

•  Make a choice. Everything in life is a choice. You can choose to be a negative weather Nelly and continuously strengthen the negative thought loops in your brain OR you can decide that you are going to embrace the weather that always comes (I don’t know how old you are but honestly by this point in time I feel like winter really shouldn’t be a surprise anymore.) 
• Learn about the Danish lifestyle concept of hygge - pronounced “hoo-ga”. The idea is basically becoming mindful about the simple pleasures found through cozy-ness and partaking in activities such as drinking a warm drink by the fire or playing board games with friends or reading a book nestled underneath of blankets.
• Take up a winter sport or activity and embrace the weather and all of it’s fruits. Try x-country skiing followed by an evening of hygge. Build snow forts with your kids. Start measuring how many cm of snow fall and help reinforce math skills with your youngsters. Flex your creative muscles and take photos of the beauty in nature while covered up by ice and snow. The opportunities to learn from and enjoy the weather are there, we just have to look for them. 
• Instead of using small talk that starts with weather related complaints, think about something a bit more genuine to talk about - even strangers appreciate the sincere question of “how are you doing today?” Followed by genuine listening and care. Small talk is pervasive in our society but it keeps us disconnected from one another and acts a little bit in the same way as “liking” a photo on facebook. It’s like showing someone you kinda care to say niceties, but you don’t care enough to ask a deeper more thoughtful question. 
• Finally when you hear others complain about the weather, resist joining in and jumping on the negative Nelly weather wagon. Either keep it to yourself or Kindly explain the activities that you enjoy doing in the weather - people generally do enjoy the activities found in the hygge lifestyle and so I find that even by shifting the conversation towards warm and cozy activities the overall vibe of the conversation can change.

For some of us Winter weather is a fact of life so we might as well start shifting the ways that we feel, think and talk about it for our own mental wellness and that of others. Remember how many hours of your life you are dedicating on talking about and thinking about the weather - do you want those moments to be taken up by negative thoughts or do you want to spin it and genuinely change the way that you feel about weather. Who knows - we might even be able to make a collective movement on the idea of being weather positive and at the very least I hope that the photo of a dog wearing a tuque will help you crack a smile ;) 

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