Is it an accident that Lent, a period of fasting and reflection, occurs as winter yields to spring? The 40 days (the Catholic Church doesn't include Sundays in the time of fasting) are meant to symbolise Jesus's 40 days in the desert, during which time he is tempted by Satan. [Did Jesus take Sundays off? Or did He do the full 40 days straight?] Lent coincides with the hungriest time of year in the Northern Hemisphere, when the crops are being sown; a good time, therefore, to limit society's intake of calories.
Easter, being a moveable feast, determined by the Computus, can fall on any Sunday between 22 March and 25 April. Weather can be particularly capricious at this time of year; in my 25 springs in Warsaw, the latest snow has fallen on 4 May - but then last winter there was hardly any.
What is immutable is the constantly lengthening day, be it wet or dry, warm or cold. The light brings joy; last autumn's Hammer of Darkness is now a memory - and the next one, a distant dread somewhere beyond the sensual pleasure of the coming summer.
Exposure to sunlight promotes the release of the hormone serotonin, which boosts mood helps you feel calm and focused. Sunlight is also responsible for the body's generation of Vitamin D, critical for your immune system, and for strengthening bones. Consistent exposure to sunlight can strengthen it, reducing the risk of illness, infections, some cancers, and mortality after surgery. Too much sun can lead to skin cancers. Getting the balance right is, as ever, critical. Taking the time to go for a walk to catch the sun is a good idea.
Whatever it was that weakened me for six days in the middle of this month has passed; the dry cough almost gone. I'm back to walking every day, back to doing a full set of daily exercises. Before the clouds rolled in from the west, this afternoon was beautiful, with temperatures hitting 19C - two-layers weather. I walked and I walked - over 13,000 paces, with 41 minutes at moderate to high intensity.
Appreciation. The past five months have - with some exceptional days along the way - been dark, damp, dismal and cold. Gratitude. The sun is back to warm us, to light our world, to draw the fullest range of colour and shade from what sulks under leaden skies for most of the winter. We feel better physically and psychologically. Christmas - Yuletide - is there to save us from the darkest days of the year. Easter is a celebration of the returned Sun. We should be grateful.
"The Sun is God," J.M.W. Turner is said to have uttered on his deathbed. The Sun is a part of God, most definitely.
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