Note: This was written in January 2010 and originally posted on a runnersworld.com forum
As the worldwide debate on climate change continues to heat up, many of us find ourselves knee-deep in the white stuff. But with the arrival of the new year we can take comfort in knowing that the darkest days of winter are behind us. Soon enough, our hemisphere will awaken from its hibernal slumber and greet us with the showy blossoms of spring, followed by the radiant colors of summer, and the cool, earthy hues of autumn. And once again, the long, cold night will return as it has - without fail - for millennia.
Each season has its unique character, but winter’s reputation is the most undeserved among the four. There is an unspeakable beauty and comforting stillness about a landscape blanketed by fallen snow. The stark contrast between darkness and light creates a clarity that reveals details unseen in the full glare of the favored seasons. And whether dangling dangerously overhead or concealed unknowingly underfoot, we marvel at the magnificence and curse the menace of the ice. Winter is nature's way of telling us to slow down.
Indeed, as temperature and sunlight wane, so does the pace of daily life. Members of the plant kingdom slip quietly from photosynthesis into dormancy, which ultimately drives certain animal species to fatten up for torpor. Neither has chosen this instinctual course of action, but the period of inactivity is used by both to conserve energy in times of scarcity, leaving them better prepared to flower or reproduce in the spring.
Personal energy conservation and propagation of the species are not currently problems for humankind (although they can easily become so if we continue to foul our atmosphere and squander finite resources). In our case, reason has eclipsed instinct and we have devised energy-intensive methods to defy Old Man Winter and continue with business as usual, while all other living organisms willingly comply with his directive. This tactic has been beneficial to our species in the short term, but its lasting implications remain uncertain.
It is not difficult to envision a future in which reckless global governments endeavor to “correct" the tilt in the earth’s axis in a desperate attempt to outrun the climate crisis by eliminating the seasons altogether. But until we achieve that state of thermo-latitudinal stability (!) we can always slow down, bundle up, and enjoy the majesty of winter.
