January 2020 - Gillian Monks

Does the world around us really change, or is it just the way we perceive it that alters? In other words, what do we really see? What is real and what is illusion?

For instance, after the past glorious days of pale spring sunshine, clear blue skies and dramatically clear mountains we are once more plunged into a grey and weeping landscape. This morning, the low cloud has completely obscured Mount Snowdon and the craggy Nantlle Ridge, mist in the valley has blurred all the edges, lack of light has robbed what is left of the vista of its light and skewed what were bold spring colours to paler, washed-out shades.

Yet the landscape itself remains the same. The mountains are still there behind the cloud, the natural world is still beavering away preparing to raise new young and burst out in growth and blossom… it just looks dead… and ultimately so much more depressing. But nothing has really altered… just how we are seeing it today through a different colour.

I always have great fun with this concept at Christmas and Easter or any time I come within range of some Quality Street chocolates. Ever since I was a child I have loved choosing my chocolate, carefully unwrapping it, luxuriating in the sweet creamy confection, and then gently smoothing out the coloured plastic wrapping and looking through it, delighted and intrigued to see how a different coloured filter makes my familiar surroundings suddenly appear so different.

Gazing into a newly opened tin of chocolates is a feast for the senses in itself – the deep jewel colours are glorious to behold – like a chest of pirate’s treasure – and that indefinably enticing scent of… chocolate! Since Christmas I have gathered a little collection of six coloured cellophane wrappers; peering through the blue, purple and green makes everything look cold or as if I was suddenly living in an underwater world. The pink, red and yellow transform everything into an intriguing, enticing, warm or sunny environment. But it is, after all, just the same room or view from my window – it is how I am choosing to see it that is different.

Try it for yourself next time you have access to coloured plastic. It works best if you have several colours so that you can compare the differences… and also compare how your mood also alters with each colour.

Next time you don’t enjoy what you are looking at, aren’t happy with the life that is yours, perhaps you might like to try changing your internal filter. The places around us, the people, the situations we live in, do not change from day to day… just the way we perceive them. Therefore, you have freedom of choice; you are in control – do you put in a nice rosy coloured filter or do you opt to depress yourself by insisting on glaring out on the world through blue or purple? Don’t blame the world you live in – it is your choice – it is entirely up to you.

Today I am definitely drawn to pink!

I must be one of very few people who was actually delighted to return to work on Thursday… in fact, I could hardly wait! When I refer to ‘work’, I am actually talking about my writing and I have been desperate to begin work proper on my next full length book for months, but had to see ‘The Alternative Advent Calendar’ birthed out into the world first.

‘Spring In Your Step’ follows directly on from ‘Merry Midwinter’ so begins at this most grey and uninspiring time of year – January. Memories of my singular childhood are tumbling onto my keyboard along with lots of ideas and observations as to how we can all really enjoy these otherwise quiet, dull days and the true relevance of this first month of the year. As in my first book, there are also ‘Comments from Joan’ and one or two recipes per chapter taken from her manuscript cookery book… hearty sustaining casseroles, comforting hot, sticky puddings and delicious treats to sustain you through the winter weather, whether you are playing in the snow or struggling to work. And there will be more ideas for little seasonal craft projects along the way. If you would like to know more, I will be putting an extract on my blog in the next few days, so watch this space!

Some people are only returning to work on Monday, 6th January (which, ironically, is actually when ‘Old Christmas Day’ would have fallen before the change in the calendar in the 1750’s) but many have already returned in the days since we celebrated New Year. Why bemoan the fact? If you do not actually enjoy what you do for a living, at least be thankful that you have got a job to go to. (Although I have to admit that in these days of zero hours contracts and gross abuse of workers I can well understand why this might not be the case but this is a different conversation for another day.)

Distaff Day is variously placed on different days around the beginning of January and in times gone by was used to celebrate the return of the women to working life after the Christmas revels (as if they had been sitting twiddling their thumbs while all the feasting and celebrating had been going on – who was supposed to cook, bake and provide it all?) Some people refer to it as Saint Distaff’s Day but in fact there is no such saint – it simply refers to spinning (work traditionally performed by women using a distaff, hence the reference in family ancestry to the ‘distaff line when referring to the mother’s or female side of the family). On the other hand, in the agricultural communities the men returned to work on Plough Monday, the first Monday after Epiphany, when their work tools would be blessed, the farm horses dressed up and all manner of joking and hi-jinks entered into.

So celebrate your return to work… or the fact that you have had a good Christmas… or that Christmas is over and you can be left in peace… or that we might get snow in the next few weeks… or that we haven’t had snow to further complicate our lives… but celebrate something. Midwinter and Christmas isn’t the only opportunity to celebrate – if you look hard enough you can always finds lots of wonderful things to be thankful and happy about… celebrate LIFE!