Retaining Warmth

I love winter because it is cuddly. I love wrapping up in a blanket in front of a fire and watching the flames lap at the bricks, or snuggling into bed with a good book learning from someone else’s life, or snuggling up with Mr. J to watch a good movie. None of that is appealing in summer, but in winter it is magic.

I’ve always loved this cuddly part of winter, but this week I learned something from it. After I slipped out of the cold bedroom air and into the cool sheets of my bed I waited for the warm to seep out of the down comforter and wrap me in its deliciousness. But as I waited it dawned on me that the comforter wasn’t what warmed me. As a matter of fact, the comforter was cold. It didn’t give me warmth; instead it captured and then reflected my own body heat.

This made me think about other things in life. For example, too often we subconsciously think that other people are there to love us or meet our needs or feed our self-esteem. But other people are like blankets; they reflect back the love we give to them. Therefore, if we are feeling unloved, or unwanted, or unappreciated, the answer is to love, want, and appreciate those around us more and then it will come back to us. Love rebounds and reflects to warm just like my comforter.