For some people, January is just a month to simply tolerate in the middle of a long winter. I’ve always rather liked January, for a number of reasons. For instance, watching the Packers in the postseason … ah, but that is another article. When I start to feel better. Which might take a while. Again. The Cardinal game? From kick off to coin toss to abrupt end to our up-and-down season … goodness! All-in-all, it was a really good ride. Next year!
In the month of January I compile our farm records to present to our tax accountant via QuickBooks. Not minding that at all, I spend time at my computer, snug in my home. When I allow time for myself, I relish settling in with my book club’s latest selection. Hunkering down with a cup of hot, fragrant coffee after morning barn chores is something I look forward to on a cold January morning. Stirring up a batch or two of our favorite cookies makes me feel settled and productive. I admit, I enjoy the reprieve from lawn mowing and field work. Hearing the furnace kick in and anticipating its penetrating warmth is soothing.
The weather is usually cold, which is a pain, but I’d rather have frozen temperatures than drippy, foggy, half-sleet, half-snow weather. These frigid days are hard on the farm, though. When they number many days in a row it gets to be a challenge to make sure everything works. If something breaks during a terribly cold streak, it makes it that much harder to fix.
Our animals especially need good, nutrient-rich food for fuel for their bodies during the cold. The outside heifers grow a lovely fur coat for winter, keeping them snug and warm. We make sure their water supply is flowing, without freeze-ups.
Just past the window, I see my husband going by with a full manure spreader as I write this. The warmth of the spreader’s load is steaming, contrasting against the frigid temps. As soon as he gets it spread on the field, occasionally a flock of turkeys appears seemingly out of nowhere, to take advantage of a hot, meals-on-wheels program, delivered right to their back door.
Even in the winter months, exercising daily, choosing healthy food in proper portions and drinking lots of water helps me stay limber and healthy for as long as possible. I have mentioned before that I exercise with Jennifer Webster. If I do not exercise with her, I find I am more sluggish during the day. There’s something about releasing those endorphins that help me feel better, especially in the dead of winter.
Her “Rise Up” program is on Direct TV, the NRBTV Channel 378, from 8-8:30 a.m. Monday through Friday. On Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays. she does low-impact aerobic exercises. On Tuesdays and Thursdays. she uses weights. Once in a great while I miss a Tuesday or a Thursday. but I figure hoisting hay bales and feeding scoops of grain to all our cows make up for a missed workout with weights!
Another reason why I like the month of January is because this is Mom’s birthday month. She has been with the Lord now for seven years. Often, I find myself daydreaming about what she’s doing. Sometimes I imagine her and Dad, their arms linked together, giggling while running through lush green grass and vibrant flowers, inhaling the colors instead of just seeing them, skipping stones across crystal clear streams that reflect their glorified bodies, beholding amazing waterfalls that take their breath away, enjoying total, sheer bliss with all of their senses alive and refined. As I daydream, I can imagine myself right there with them!
Watching nail-biting Packer games, organizing farm records, enjoying my book club’s latest read, a hot cup of good coffee, baking something yummy in a cozy home, tending to the work and animals, getting proper exercise, along with remembering Mom and Dad, are all good ways to pass the time during a wintry January on the farm.
(“However, as it is written: ‘No eye has seen, no ear has heard, no mind has conceived
what God has prepared for those who love Him.’” 1 Corinthians 2:9)
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