Learning Moments

Wondering what winter brings

How do you navigate transitions? Do you move between chapters with ease, or does starting something new take you a moment?

I’ve noticed I tend to lag behind when I return from holidays, needing a few days to settle back into everyday life.

And now, I am wondering what winter will bring.

Nature is in transition, and we’ve just switched to winter time. It was still almost summerish two weeks ago, when I came back from my late-summer holidays. Now it’s dark early, I’m wearing pullovers, and life is moving indoors. The retreat into our “four walls” is cosy, but it also separates us a little from the world.

I haven’t landed in winter yet. I’m still adjusting to the new rhythm, and I feel a little restless, unprepared, even slightly confused. I don’t know what winter will bring. I haven’t even thought about what I want to explore or create this winter.

I love this time of year: the soft light, colours and falling leaves. It’s even my favourite season. So it’s not the season itself that unsettles me, but the transition into it. It does something to me, and I want to do something with it.

It reminds me of the Ecocycle: the phase of letting go accompanied by the quiet stirring of something new. Maybe I’m not behind. Maybe I’m in between.

A pause.
To let go.
To allow something new to simmer.

I don’t need to know what winter brings. But I hear the fireplace is calling. Sitting on the floor, warming my feet and staring into the flames, letting my thoughts wander and seeing what bubbles up.

What about you?
What ritual could help you cross into this season?

*****

Thank you for your inspiration, Tenneson, Jenny, Elif, Saoirse, Wendy, Valeska, Heather and Natasha.

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The bit at the end

Exciting events on the horizon to support your exploration:

• What if the most rebellious thing you could do right now is pause?
  Pause with us—find out more about Rebel with a Pause here and join us for a free monthly 30-minute pause.
• Curious to experience Street Wisdom for yourself — inspiring, surprising, and quietly powerful? Reach out, and let’s wander with wonder through the streets, alleys, and bridges of Alkmaar, Amsterdam or Nijmegen. Learn more about Street Wisdom here.
• Join the next Unhurried Conversation—a space to slow down, listen, and connect. We meet on the 2nd Monday of every month. It’s free, and you’re warmly welcome. Sign up here.
• For more Learning Moments, subscribe to my newsletter and get timely updates straight to your inbox.

Reach out; I’m always open for a chat.
Creatively,
Nadia

P.S.The paintings featured on the blog are my own.