Struggling through Winter

It's been pitch dark for more than three hours and I spent those three hours in well-lit places. I ate dinner and exercised in order to fight off the winter blues, and I came home to sit in the light when I just want to sleep for twelve hours. I should write my second week essay, or I should finish the book I'm enjoying, but I want to stare at the car wreck that is our democracy in the beginning of 2017.

Wrestling between things you want to do and things you feel you ought to do is never fun. It's slightly more enjoyable to wrestle between things you want to do when the things you ought to do are equally enjoyable. That's one reason why a person should try (if she can) to find a profession she will enjoy doing, so she will enjoy doing what she is obligated to do (I give thanks to Mark Twain for putting me on to this). Enjoying what you are obligated to do is never more important than during the summer months; if I must spend precious daylight filled hours indoors doing something, please let it be something I enjoy.

But the darkness calls me in, telling me it's OK to feel bad and lets the obligations weigh more than they should. And it is cold and dark and it *is* that much harder to get up and go and you must find ways to take joy in your obligations during these winter months. Look back on your New Years' Resolutions to remember the warmth of holiday fun, or of holidays past. Be spiteful to the people who are worse off and don't know it. Know that these are the dark days and you just gotta pull through.

Indulge the lesser evils. Know that other people's vices are worse than yours. but try to be kind. The darkness will give everyone an opportunity to hold on to grudges, and perhaps you should take the moment to fight that. I'm not sure if this is a good enough essay, but as of right now it's the best I can muster.