A C.S. Lewis kind of vibe
wintering volume 5
You are capable of shaping the world around you. You can carve out beauty and simplicity out of nothing, out of ashes, out of fragments and pieces and patchwork. Even the harshest winters and the cruelest circumstances can have gentleness and peace. Sometimes, that can look like slipping away into a different world and letting that world inspire you to bring a little magic into your day.
Nothing, absolutely nothing, makes me feel like cozying up by a fire with a warm blanket more than C.S. Lewis. Anything by C.S. Lewis. Fiction, non fiction, all of it. I love the way that he writes, the stories he tells, and the way he reasons spirituality and relationship with God. He has depth without pretension and is playful without being ridiculous. I could cozy up with any of his books, from Narnia to theological primers, and feel the same levels of warmth.
So this week’s wintering has a theme and that theme is Lewis.
In this volume of wintering :
Something to do
Something to drink
Something to read
Something to eat
Winter where you are
Something to do :
Every year, this is the most requested activity! This week, we’re going to go to the thrift store and find an outfit inspired by C.S. Lewis or your favorite author, book book series, tv show, whatever you want. You don’t have to share it or even tell anyone else you’re doing it. Or — you can go with a friend, take your kids, or make it a date. If you can’t squeeze in a thrift trip this week, just go through your closet and see what you find. Sometimes doing things like this, even if it feels kind of silly, can wake up parts of your brain that the cold weather ices out. We want our brains to be active and happy and if doing something that might feel a little silly produces serotonin, then who cares, right??
Alternative (or additional) something to do : Read the quotes and look at the images I’ve shared in this email and use them as a muse to create. You can journal, write a poem, draw, paint, whatever your creative outlet of choice.
I love it when you go all in, so if you do this this week, tag me so I can see!
Something to drink :
There are a world of Narnia inspired drinks out there. I like this one. These are our favorite lavender petals - organic lavender flowers
Recipe is from https://bestdayoftheweek.com/lavender-london-fog-recipe/
Lavender London Fog -
Earl Grey tea bag
1 tbs of dried lavender inside a permanent or disposable tea filter/bag
1/2 tsp of vanilla extract
1 tbs of honey
3/4 cup of steamed milk/plant based milk
Boiling water
Fill a mug halfway with boiling water and add the lavender, Earl Grey tea bag.
Add in the honey and stir until dissolved, followed by the vanilla extract.
Top with steamed milk/plant based milk.
Something to read :
Fantasy/children : The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe
Science fiction / teens + grownups : Out of the Silent Planet (the first book in the Perelandra series)
Spiritual formation : God in the Dock
Something to eat :
Lucy’s Roast Apples from the unofficial Narnia cook book
- 6 firm Granny Smith apples
- 6 tbs brown sugar
- 6 tbs raisins
- 1/4 tsp cinnamon
- sweetened whipped cream or vanilla ice cream
1. preheat oven to 375 degrees
2. Grease a baking dish
3. Wash the apples and remove the cores without breaking through the bottom. Place apples in baking dish
4. Combine sugar, raisins, and cinnamon and pack into cavities. Pile any extra filling on top. Pour boiling water around the apples to a depth of 1/4”. Cover and bake for 45 minutes or until the apples are tender but still hold their shape,
5. Remove the apples to a serving dish and boil the juices in the pan until slightly thickened. Pour over the apples.
5. Serve apples warm or chilled, topping with whipped cream or ice cream, if desired.
You can’t bake without an apron and this one is from a ministry in our own wintering community and a college friend of mine! The ministry, Anugra, provides employment for women in oppressive communities in India. The company provides a safe place for women to earn an income and develop skill sets to provide for their families. The work they’re doing is truly incredible. They sell all kinds of cozy, hygge, home goods, all organic goods handmade by local seamstresses in India.
This apron is made with handwoven denim from organic cotton and natural dyes. Safe for you, safe for the workers, better for the environment. We love a triple threat.
Winter where you are :
This section of wintering is reader submitted. Thank you for sharing how you winter!
“But roots still grow in winter.
And this winter, I’m growing mine.”
In 2007, after living in New England for 17 years, I left my family of towering pines in search of a new grand adventure. Leaving for college was more than an educational pursuit, it was my great escape. Since then, I’ve lived all over: Lakeland, Florida, Washington D.C., Baltimore, Maryland, Fullerton, California, and even spent 6 months living abroad in Israel. But it wasn’t until I returned in the Autumn of 2022 that I fell in love with New England all over again.
The plan was to visit for 1 month - I stayed for 3. I then returned to California long enough to pack my bags before moving 3,037 miles across the country - back to the woods that raised me.
After 17 years of exploring in my 20s and early 30s, I longed for New England once again, and my return to the woods that raised me has proven to be the best soul medicine of all.
Yes, winter in New England can be brutal. The cold air feels like needles pricking your soft skin. The full-body chill that begins in your bones and shakes you to the core, all the way down to your toes.
But amidst the harsh elements, I’m reminded that roots still grow in winter, and this winter, I’m growing mine.
In this newfound wintering, my eyes are bright with wonder and curiosity about things I once considered boring and mundane in my youth.
All of my senses are activated, and I discover something new and surprising every day. Like the sound of silence after a fresh snowfall. The sweet smell of evergreen, and the bright red berries waving from the bushes that line the trodden path. The rhythmic beat of ice melting from the trees. The once vibrant fall leaves that have found rest for the winter, now blanketing the ground in muted shades of brown and orange. Like the frost that gently caresses each blade of grass, and the family of deer prints frozen like clues waiting to be found for those playful enough to seek them.
Winter is alive! Gloriously alive.
And the cold I once feared reminds me that I am too.
My winter in Maine looks like: long walks in the woods and even longer phone calls with family, learning how to knit scarves, concocting herbal tinctures, sharing baked goods with my neighbor, making lots of chicken broth, pouring homemade candles, and creating my own all-natural skincare.
My home is covered with soft blankets, spiced candles, cozy (and heated) pillows, ceramic mugs, and fuzzy socks. In my kitchen you will find my mother's recipes, scribbled down on notebook paper and covered with flour and seasonings. You’ll see my silver metal tea kettle and the cast iron skillet that lives on the stove year round.
There is magic everywhere.
These are my roots.
These are the woods that raised me.
This winter, I am home.
Anastasia Jones-Downing
Instagram: www.instagram.com/anastasiarjd
That’s it for this wintering volume! And in case you didn’t know, paid subscribers get extra wintering content and few other perks! This week will have a special C.S. Lewis themed podcast exclusively for paid subscribers.
You can upgrade your subscription here. :
Looks like part of this post cut off when I sent the email. Updated the missing pieces!
My family is doing some “forced” cozy wintering right now, as our power is out and there’s a snowstorm outside. Candles lit, batteries in the kids sound machines for sleep!