Embodied Cold
Snow: Raw, Real & Elemental
Dear Good Reader,
There’s been snow.
It’s been cold,
and windy.
Today I tried to feel that cold, not just in my lungs, but in a more visceral way…
and to explore if the images could possibly reveal how it felt, the initial comfort and then the shooting spikes,
…one at a time, balanced, and finally suspended.1
The chill, a thrill, brings me back a few years ago when I last walked barefoot in the snow…but that was next to my house and I didn’t have to walk through a long field to get home.
What do you think, though. I’m not sure these images show how cold it’s been…they are proof, yes, that took off my shoes, but can you feel the cold when you look at my bare feet in the snow, or do you feel colder just looking at the snow on its own, or are they just abstractions?
Feet back in warm boots, I wonder, could I stay longer next time?
Lilly and I were at the snow-covered rocky ‘beach’ along the Ottauquechee River. Next time, might I walk in the uneven terrain?
These snow ‘textures,’ like skin - - variable and unique.
In my old life, back in New Hampshire, I didn’t notice the look and feel of snow, but now I am, which, it seems to me, is what an ‘embodied’ practice is about - - being fully present in what is now, not what might have been or never was.
And this snow demands attention.
Come back tomorrow, it beckons, and see how we’ve changed.
Every day is different, but our feet still walk and the snow still falls…
and if it’s too cold, poor Lilly gets ice in her paws,
and if it’s warmer, I might be distracted by taking my shoes off again, and she’ll look at me, begging to play.
It’s all very raw, real and elemental.
Thank you for spending your time with Lilly and me. We are grateful for your company.
With gratitude for you being you,
Lyn
And of course there’s the compost, always keeping things real. Take care this week.
My sister, Sarah Swett (author of The Gusset) has been a barefoot runner for years. She has always had a deeper connection to the materiality of the world than I have, but I’m learning. I am so grateful to have an older sister who leads and supports and collaborates. Anyway, I wanted to acknowledge that this skin to snow thing runs in the family!
I think this year you’re leading the way— barefoot and connecting. It’s re-inspiring.