Easy Living UK, June 2011
One day in January, the sun appeared. It’s not so unusual in the rural corner of New England that I call home, where there are an average of 196 sunny days a year. Except that this winter we have endured months of snow and sub-zero temperatures. So sun was a big deal. There was happiness in the valley, and for a moment, in me. Then the all-too-familiar crept back: the feeling that the permafrost seems to have sapped my sanity and ability to accomplish one meaningful thing. And what I really need is a jaunt to the Maldives or a carpenter to fix my roof.
How difficult it is to find enduring solace in a moment of happiness, and try to focus on what there is – heat, blankets, healthy children, a fridge groaning with food and a sun in the heavens – rather than what is lacking. From that morning of bliss, I reverted to being an ungrateful wretch.