January in Iowa: Very Cold & just a little snow

“I hate winter,” I said to a friend at church last evening. “Oh really? Me, not so much. Do you want to ride the BRR Bike Ride (24-mile ride) on February 1st with me?”

No thanks. Really. The cold at the beginning of this week (low of negative 10) was awful. I stayed inside and kept a fire going all day on Monday, January 20th. My very few forays outside were to take the garbage bins to the street and then retrieve them when they were empty, And of course there was the fetching of more firewood. I hate winter. I know I should be better. I know I should embrace all of the seasons. But I don’t. One thing I found to help me get through this grey, cold time of year was a good book.

My blogging has been left alone for too long. I finally felt moved today to share with anyone who hasn’t yet heard of this 2021 novel: The Seed Keeper by Diane Wilson. I sat down with it Monday evening and couldn’t stop until near midnight when my watering eyes gave out. Wrapping it up Tuesday morning made me so happy! Not that it was a necessarily happy ending, but there was completion, and there was hope. Specific reasons I enjoyed it: Minnesota Native Americans (especially the Dakhóta) and their history were new to me, and I learned so much. Several generations of Native and settler history were interwoven. And the seeds, and the planting and watching and waiting and the hope of abundance of food for one’s family. This book took me away from this cold time when the ground is cold as stone – and when imagining grass, leaves, or generous gardens is next to impossible. This book took me way from my life and helped me imagine children who were taken from their Native American families to live in orphanages or foster homes where they could not feel a part of a family or a people. The damage was done and is still l hurting descendants and our country. I’m thankful for this book, this author, and for any recognition of truths of our American history. (Even though I’m trying to take a news vacation, I did catch that Denali is slated to be changed back to Mount McKinley. Recognizing the First Nations here has always been hard for us, and now our president wants to take back any progress that has been made.) But I want to learn more of the Native ways and languages.

Prior to sitting down with this book on Monday evening, I had been listening to another beautiful book: Braiding Switchgrass by Robin Wall Kimmerer. It was as if Braiding Switchgrass was the background I needed to be able to really immerse myself into the Wilson novel. Not the same but with similar themes and sounds and sensibilities. A friend had recommended Braiding Switchgrass years ago, and what I’ve learned about the Pottawattamie people from it has been so helpful to me, especially after spending time in Pottawattamie County, Iowa researching the Native history of that area for the Creighton University Retreat Center the summer of 2023.

Another friend gave me The Seed Keeper this Christmas. And then over the holiday season Iowa Public Radio interviewed its author Diane Wilson, a repeat program, for The Seed Keeper was the All Iowa Reads selection from 2024. (Better late than never – when it comes to anything I say – but especially a good book!) All of these things came together to provide a rich reading experience that saved me from winter despair once again. I know there are many ways to stay positive during this time of Iowa year. I offer these two books as possible escapes.

Does January feel like the longest month ever to you?

How do you stay positive when it gets so bloody cold?

Thanks for reading and please reply either on my WordPress site or on Facebook.

Un grand merci! Tammy