I wake up every day checking the weather updates, hoping and wishing it would be my lucky day and the temperature would finally go up and the warm sun would shine on my eyes with a slight cool breeze just enough for the trees to dance with cheer. But it seems that you are here to stay far longer than I had hoped.

You might be absorbing my words in your cold layers as another letter of hate as all you ever hear is a heavy voice of disappointment saying “Winter is here” or something in that regard. But hear me out until the very end as my letter is of appreciation and gratitude even though it might not seem like it. I actually wanted to thank you…

I wanted to thank you for the countless inspiring lessons you bring as you creep into my bones. From you, I learn the capacity to forgive just when I think it’s impossible as my heart takes it all in and builds thicker walls as the days go by. Just like you become harsher and harsher, and your icicles sharper and sharper, but also stronger, strong enough for roads to be built where rivers once flowed and though very few individuals show appreciation, you still find a way to let go and melt in grace and silence allowing the earth to benefit from the water you leave.

Thank you for showing me that beauty exists in many shapes and forms. Even though you might freeze me to death, I cannot deny that I am always in awe to see your white sparkling blanket covering the biggest and highest of mountains. Every time it snows, I contemplate on the beauty of your carefully designed snowflakes.

Maybe you are not actually as harsh as we think you are, maybe you are like a lot of us who melt and crack from the inside a bit more every day as life throws its challenges at us but hide it so perfectly that even when we shatter, sparks from the crystals allow flowers and colors to appear again. Maybe you are not an evil curse like how you are portrayed in the movies, but a lesson we humans have to go through.

…