enjoy the dark cold

the secret, then, is learning how to enjoy the dark cold, because it will be here regardless of what you say, how you protest, how much you pine for summer and sun. I think this is an acquired skill that people of the north learn — and I’m learning it, now, living in Berlin, where the sun doesn’t rise until 8am, and begins setting by 3pm. when there is sun outside by the canal, people run to it like it’s gold, and we’re part of the gold rush. it rarely lasts more than ten minutes. but enjoying the dark cold is a good exercise; too. when it’s dark and cold, you appreciate things like: a room full of candles, an afternoon baking an indulgent cake, a fogged window surrounded by plants, long phone conversations with old friends, watching a movie in your forgotten mother tongue…