The weather – it is what it is and complaining or begrudging it will not change it
(See here for the full list)
We've lived in Canada for nearly 5 years now, after being born and raised in Australia. One of the biggest changes moving here was to adjust to the weather (side note - I've often joked that Canada and Australia are basically the same... except for the accent and the weather. Probably a post for another time). It was amazing to arrive in the fall and see the colours of the leaves and crispness in the air, then transition into our first winter (snow!), experience our first spring as everything came alive, then understand why summer is such a big deal in the Northern Hemisphere.
This last winter was one of the worst ones in 20 years and I will admit that there were times when it got the best of me (I wasn't alone!) This summer hasn't been great either - below seasonal and feeling more like fall at times. Not exactly what a warm-blooded Aussie really needs!
We were told early on that the only way to really thrive throughout the winter was to embrace it rather than resent it and it's been absolutely true. There have been (too) many times when I've spent so much time focusing on how the weather wasn't great that I've cocooned myself away and missed opportunities to get out and enjoy life - regardless of the weather.
While it's true that not focusing on the weather can be a challenge - especially because it seems to be the second topic of conversation after how busy we are - it mostly requires the same discipline of shutting off technology and being present that seem to make up most of the positive choices I want to make. We have so much access to information on the weather now (24 hour weather channels, apps, websites...) that we can end up focusing more on what may or may not happen that we miss what's actually happening. We can be so overwhelmed that it's going to be [pick the temperature/weather you don't like] for the next 5 days that we miss the sunny break, the cool breeze, the reality that it didn't rain constantly.
As I pass 40, I really want to get better at accepting the weather for what it is. As I said in my original list, complaining or begrudging it hasn't changed the actual state of the weather so far in my experience and I doubt it's going to happen any time soon. Sure, there are days when it'll be a downer that it's not perfect (whatever the definition of perfect weather is), but whatever it is can't be changed, so I might as well focus on the things that are really important and recognize how fortunate I am that most of the time, the weather doesn't stop life happening. I know there are lots of people around the world for whom that's not a reality, which is yet another reason to be grateful.
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