Many people thought I was insane when I moved to Boston 6 years ago from Silicon Valley.  The fact that I grew up in Hong Kong (where it never gets below freezing) and that I only dabble at snowboarding and other winter sports makes it seem even stranger.

I have a love hate relationship with New England winters. Let’s be clear – practically speaking, it’s a pain.  It’s cold and messy and uncomfortable.  I find that my west coast trips are always more frequent and a little longer in the winter.

But there’s something I really like about these winters.  I’ve never been able to articulate it – I used to say it “makes me feel human”.  Too Zen, I know.  Here’s a bit more about what I mean.

The passage of time

 Winters are a nice visual cue of the passage of time.  Its a bit easier to remember what happenned 8 months ago when it was clearly a different season. It’s good to be aware of time when it’s moving slowly – eg: “wow, we accomplished so much even though it seemed slow”.  It’s especially important when time moves too quickly – eg: ”wow, last winter I resolved to do x,y, and z and Here I am a year later in the exact same spot”.  Most important, it reminds you how much (or little) time you’ve spent with the people you care about and working on the things you love.

Self Awareness About Highs and Lows

Everyone has highs and lows.  It’s the nature of life and of any challenging endeavor.  Almost everyone I know gets a little grumpy or even depressed in the cold, winter months.  The short days and long nights don’t help.  But going through this predictable cycle year after year keeps me in touch with my own moods.  So that when I am feeling similarly down because things aren’t going as planned, it’s a familiar feeling, and I know how to handle it better.  There’s also the recurring pattern of an uplifting spring after a dark winter that keeps me optimistic about the future. 

You Are Not In Control

Finally, these cold winters are such an obvious reminder that I have pretty limited control on the world around me.  In a more temperate climate, it’s easier to shape the world to your bidding – to only go to pleasant and comfortable places, experience pleasant and comfortable temperatures, etc. But during New England winters, you feel cold, you slip on ice and step in nasty puddles, your car gets stuck, etc. It’s humbling and it’s easy to get short tempered.  But separating the things you can control from the things you can’t is an important skill.  And it’s strangely liberating too.