Commentary

REDSTONE ARSENAL, Ala. - What comes to mind when you think about winter' My personal perspective on winter is very different compared to other seasons. When I think about spring, I think about flowers blooming, trees busting out with renewed life and the long awaited warmer weather. When I consider fall, things like Thanksgiving, football and the leaves changing colors come to mind.

Here are the words that come to mind what I focus on winter: death, ice, hypothermia, wind chill, death, snow, shoveling snow, shoveling more snow, buying a snow blower, death, thermal underwear, frozen pipes, salt trucks, black ice, dead batteries, stuck cars, frostbite, gangrene, death, ice fishing, diminished mental capacity, seasonal affective disorder and death.

These are the things I associate with winter. You can probably tell I'm not a winter guy. But I think I'm in good company. Most people dislike winter. Really, how many people do you know who spend their entire life working and living in Florida, and then when they retire, they move to North Dakota' In fact we have a semi-national holiday dedicated to a rodent predicting the meteorological future. We call it Groundhog Day. We don't do that with spring, summer or fall. But we want to get rid of winter and bring on spring.

We can escape the winter season by heading for a warmer climate during those months, but what about when you and I experience a spiritual winter' Perhaps you've lost someone recently. Someone close to you died and will never return. And nothing ever will replace him or her.

Maybe the doctor had some bad news for you regarding your recent medical tests. You thought you were going to watch your kids get married and have children and that you'd grow old and die when you were good and ready. But now your dreams about the future haunt you because you realize you're never going to experience them.

Maybe you failed at your job or you have a child who somehow got off the track in spite of all your efforts to raise him or her properly. Perhaps you've been hurt by betrayal, divorce or adultery by someone you loved.

These events bring on spiritual winter in our lives and God tells us there are times it will happen and there's no avoiding it. In his word it states, "In this world you will have tribulation ... human beings are born to trouble as surely as the sparks fly upward."

How can you insulate yourself to find protection from the coming winter' I would like to strongly recommend that you cultivate healthy relationships. In those winter experiences, you'll be tempted to isolate yourself into hibernation because winter carries with it a sense of failure, shame and sadness. Don't do it! In winter, you will never desire community less and never need it more.

There was an interesting study conducted on depression by the University of Pennsylvania. They discovered that bipolar depression, which is biologically caused, was the same for all groups of people. But with reactive depression, which is tied to circumstances, environment and upbringing, the study revealed that one particular group in the United States experienced far less depression than any other group - the Amish. The attributed this to the strong sense of community they had nurtured which made them far less vulnerable to depression.

Our culture over the last few decades has evolved into a more individualistic self-oriented society. We admire the self made individual who succeeds without requiring help from others. This has resulted in a lack of connectedness with a network of close friends. A recent study revealed that less than 10 percent of men and less than 30 percent of women could name one true friend with whom they could share openly their problems. Consequently, when winter comes into their lives, those without a support group become increasingly more vulnerable to depression.

You were made for community. When you experience winter, you will never want it less but never need it more. Take time to build on relationships today before winter strikes.

Have a great day!