January 2021 Chronicle by Marika Vandekraats.

We all tuned in, checked in, finding one another through our screens. Our passage ways into one another’s homes. We took the time to dream, to share, to listen, opening ourselves for connection from our domestic spaces. My slippers keep my feet warm, feeling comfort in familiar sensations. I see the comforts everyone else experiences also. Dog entering the screen, paintings hung on bedroom walls, plants reaching into the frame to briefly wave to the rest of us. Window beaming light in from behind your shoulder, I see the view you wake up to.

Miss you all. Still miss you all.

With snow and ice, we build our present, we build homes for us to keep one another warm. That’s our number one fear, being cold, the cold that puts you to sleep. But we have one another, so we keep each other warm, safe, waking up the next morning.

Sculpting out of the white plains into the shapes of bricks, we build domes to rest inside. We can build a chimney too, keep the heat in and let the smoke out.  

With snow and ice, I build what we need. Here- take a seat here, I’ll build you an armchair and a stool for you to rest your feet on. I can build you a table too, if you’re needing a place to write, to draw.  

We worry over our vision also. In forever whiteness, we must know when our vision is overloaded. Close your eyes and listen to the crunching of the snow from my feet. Thats where I am. Use your other senses to find yourself. 

In our frozen present, we store our memories to return to in the spring. Snow thaws from under us, maybe even a patch of grass reveals itself, a reminder of past summer days. 

Keep in mind, you must find your entry point. Find how you can enter in and know what you can offer. Care, knowledge, energy, stories, love. You have so much that you can share. 

Find a way to give, but not all of it. Always keep some for yourself.