Becoming an Architect

             True enough, winter is coming. It feels like fall just got here. A team of us raked leaves up at church today and while raking, there were flurries. I’ve been hearing from a lot of people that coming of winter, the lengthening of the night/shortening of day, and the upcoming holidays are especially stressful this year. Given our current pandemic circumstances, this is no surprise. A lot of people seem to be in agreement: this could be a hard winter.

           When the pandemic hit last year, it came at the tail end of winter and we had spring right around the corner. We were grateful for the warmer days that we could spend outside while we were experiencing the first round of quarantines. Now November is passing, Thanksgiving is next week, and we’re all kind of wondering: how’s it gonna be? 

            It could be a hard winter. No doubt for many, it will be. 

            But I also think we have a chance to try and do what we can to make it better. I’ve been reading Atomic Habits by James Clear, which is all about how tiny changes can have remarkable results. The book has a lot of really good down-to-earth advice about creating habits, but as I’m looking forward to winter, this line stood out to me: “You don’t have to be the victim of your environment. You can also be the architect of it.”* A lot of times, we blame our environment for the mindless things we do. The cookies were on the counter, so I ate them. The apples were in that bottom drawer of my fridge, so I didn’t see them and I forgot about them and they went bad. Clear’s point is that in most cases, we’re not locked into our environment. We do have the power to make changes – even small changes – to make it easier to create and stick to good habits. 

            I was thinking about that line, how we can be architects of our environments rather than victims. And I was thinking about that in terms of how we prepare for winter during a pandemic. As the architect of my environment, I’ve thought of things I can do to set myself up for those days when I just need the visual reminder to keep going. I bought myself a light therapy box. It’s actually on right now, keeping my face bright while I type. I am pre-packing quilt projects: they are precut and pre-bagged so I can just pull them out and start sewing. I’m keeping books on my headboard. I bought stands of colorful pompom garland to add a little extra pop of color. Might seem like a small thing, but when I wake up in the morning and see those colorful pompoms, they do make me smile. 

            We can be the architects of our environments. If you love winter and find a lot of joy in the winter months, I am so happy for you. But if you’re like me and winter tends to be a time of struggle (especially if you are like me and deal with Seasonal Affect Disorder), now is a good time to start thinking through how you can be an architect of your environment. Will you keep a card table up somewhere for the puzzles? Maybe you have someone you know who is also into puzzles and you can do puzzle exchanges (easily done in a safe, socially distant way!). Can you add color somewhere to brighten your day? Set up some comforting or energetic tunes on your phone’s playlist now? Stock up on a local coffee shop’s coffee beans so you can support your local business and enjoy their coffee at home? 

            We don’t have to be the victims of our environments. We can be the architects. 

            I hope you have a safe and blessed Thanksgiving, whatever that looks like for you this year. 

 

For the Lord will comfort Zion; he will comfort all her waste places, and will make her wilderness like Eden, her desert like the garden of the Lord; joy and gladness will be found in her, thanksgiving and the voice of song. –Isaiah 51:3


How will you be the architect of your environment? Share your ideas in the comments!

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