The long, bleak winter

As months go, January is a dreary month. Falling in the shadow of the holiday season, there really isn't much to recommend it.

True, early January is exciting. The New Year has begun and most people are optimistic about the months to come. However, this feeling wears off quickly.

At this point, we are confronted with what January really is. From a financial point of view, most people have to deal with the aftermath of how they overextended themselves when it comes to Christmas purchases.

If it isn't the reality of the credit card bills arriving in our mailboxes, then it's the emptiness of our savings' accounts that cause a lot of anxiety.

When it comes to dreariness though, much of it occurs because of the weather and dullness of nature. We may take it for granted but nature adds a tremendous amount to the quality of our daily lives.

Right now, when we look outside we mostly see a charcoal gray landscape. Nothing is blooming. There are no vivid colors. The whole thing blends into nothingness.

Additionally, the weather tends to isolate us. It becomes a lot easier to stay home during the evening than to venture out for fun because of the cold. This leads to what some folks call "cabin fever."

I hate cabin fever. Even though I am a homebody by nature, I really dislike having to stay there when we go through the bitterly low temperatures that we experienced a week or so ago.

When this feeling sets in, it produces a restlessness that cannot be satisfied. None of my interests are able to tide me over. All I feel is that I don't want to be where I am and that San Diego might not be that bad a place to live despite being in California.

However, it is at times like this that I have to remind myself to be patient. This is because the dreariness of January has a purpose. It may not seem that way as we are going through it, but there is a purpose.

After all, a person can't truly appreciate the good aspects of life without going through some of the bad. Winter confines us in ways that many don't enjoy. When we are confined, we feel out of control, which is probably why I dislike cabin fever so much. Instead of staying home because I enjoy it, I'm being forced to do so by the weather, and I don't like that feeling.

Still, help is on the way. Even though it doesn't feel like it right now, spring is just around the corner. In only a matter of weeks, the charcoal landscape will give way to all sorts of vivid colors.

Even though spring begins in late March, look for the change to actually begin in late February. The temperatures will slowly moderate, and many early blooming flowers and trees will begin to show growth.

The older I get, the more I appreciate spring. Much like bears awakening from hibernation, we leave the warmth of our homes and become more active outside during spring.

The pace of life picks up in a dramatic and better way. How could it not? Spring is a time of rebirth, and if a season of rebirth does not put more pep in your step, then I do not know what will.

So, hang on, those of you suffering from cabin fever. The days of dreariness are dwindling.

It may seem like it is far away, but it will be here before you know it.