December often seems like the busiest time of year with holiday concerts, Christmas programs, decorating, shopping, baking and holiday correspondence to send. Â This year, while there is a brief reprieve in events and fewer and smaller get-togethers, the season seems no less busy. Â Carving out a time for reflection and peaceful moments can be restorative this time of year. Â Whether you celebrate Christmas, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa, the winter solstice, or the season of cold and darkness, the library has a plentiful selection of available resources.Â
Reading holiday- or winter-themed stories and essays is a cherished pastime of mine. No holiday season is complete without a rereading of âA Minnesota Christmas Anthology,â edited by Stephen Engles. Another favorite is âChristmas in Minnesota: A Celebration in Memories, Stores, and Recipes of Seasons Past,â edited by Marilyn Ziebarth and Brian Horrigan. It contains some of the same stories and adds
Nesting
Let s be real. We re going to be spending a lot of time indoors, with just a few people, for quite a while. And it s OK to be OK with that. In fact, the Danish, who experience long, cold, dark winters just like ours, have a word for the feelings of winter s cozy, charming contentment: hygge. (English speakers approximate the difficult pronunciation as hoo-gah or hue-gah. ) If you re interested in hygge, the library has some great books to help you learn about it, says Spokane County Library public services manager Gwendolyn Haley. Though hygge isn t concisely translated into English, the elements include togetherness, relaxation, indulgence, presence and comfort. It starts by creating the right atmosphere.