Temperatures at our house have already been in the 20s at night. It is hard to go anywhere or do anything outside, even simple things like getting the mail or walking indoors from the car, without feeling chilly in the process. Warming up in winter becomes an occupation.
My father-in-law used to sit in the sun by an east-facing window to warm his body from the chill of a winter’s morning. He would explain, “I am a sun lover.” As he warmed up, he often deliberated about better ways of doing things or something he wanted to get rid of or buy.
My mother and her sister, Aunt Nellie, warmed up by turning on their electric blankets—first on the “High” setting to knock the chill off of the sheets, then the “Low” setting to keep themselves toasty. When my niece was a little girl, she would spend the night and sleep with her grandmother, Abuela Wood. They listened to “easy listening” music before they fell asleep underneath the warm sheets and blankets. It was their tradition. Our matriarchs passed down their electric blanket devotion to my sister, my daughter, my niece, and me.
Returning home in the evening from a chilly day at work, my father’s warming up was a highlight of the day. He loved wood-burning fireplaces, but we didn’t have a fireplace at our house, so he made do with an electric coil wall register he called the “Cheer.” For him, the Cheer was a fire, representing immediate warmth and coziness. He was even known to roast a marshmallow or two in front of it. He would sometimes sit there for hours reading the newspaper, the “Book of Knowledge” (Mother earned a new volume every month at the grocery store), the dictionary, the encyclopedia, or the Holy Bible.
After I married and we had a family of our own, we once visited a state park in Kentucky that had an indoor pool. While it was snowing outside and frosty, we were sitting in a hot tub indoors. It was a great way to warm up, but the bill came due when we had to get out of the hot tub and walk outside to our room.
I love to warm up now by putting on a warm sweater, drinking hot tea or coffee, or settling down on our couch with a down throw on top. Thick socks and big pillows are must haves.
There is nothing like, however, the warmth of being close to another person. When I hold our infant granddaughter, her tiny body warms my chest. When I hug a friend or sit next to a family member, the closeness is electric. When my husband and I just lie in bed together in the winter, there is a warmth that comes from feeling secure. No wassail, wall register, electric blanket, or even the sun can warm like this.
It is a bedtime story, having a friend over, getting a puppy, Christmas Eve feeling. It is like being rocked to sleep. My heart’s hearth is replenished when I am close to someone I love. No matter what problems, frustrations, or disappointments may have been a part of my day, feeling close to another human is like passing on an ember to become one flame.