Little joys

It seems that winter (as I have grown up in Sweden knowing it) has arrived to Scotland. On Monday the snow was falling already when I trudged from Morningside towards the office while it was still dark. Ten hours later it was still falling, with only a short mid-afternoon pause as if taking a deep breath like an endurance athlete. At times, through my office window, it seemed that the snow was rising towards the sky rather than falling from it.

On days like that day, when winter seems dark, cold and miserable, it is good to think about the little things that bring joy to the proceedings.

• Unfolding the paper wrapper and slowly peeling the first blood orange of the season, eager to see just how ”bloody” it is.*  
• Having a banana and blueberry pancake (made by the boyfriend) for breakfast, on a weekday, and enjoying it in bed with a mug of strong coffee on the side and Radio 4 news in the background.
• Keeping my hands warm in the pair of thick wool mittens I knitted; the ones for which I got the pattern wrong and ended up creating a whole new design.
• Putting back the colourful table cloth on my horrible kitchen table, and placing colourful cut flowers and bowls of fruit across it.

 Yes, sometimes it is good to look at the little joys and forget about those big problems for a day. It seems that the snow may still be falling at the end of it anyway.




* To avoid any Breaking Bad-esque suspense - it wasn't. The first blood orange of the season was more Disney than Django.