Everyone winters at one time or another, perhaps it is a result of illness, death in the family, the pressures of work…or a pandemic. Wintering is a period of isolation when you feel like you fall between the cracks of life and feel blocked from progress. In this episode, best selling author Katherine May shares tips on how to embrace the winter of our lives in small ways and how to recognize the process and engage with it mindfully. She shows us how to slow down, pay attention to moments of transition, and learn to prepare for the next phase. By embracing winter and really listening to its messages, we can learn about ourselves and also, more importantly, we can learn to look more kindly on other people’s crises. As Katherine says, “we may never choose to winter, but we can choose how.” I loved this empowering and thoughtful conversation, and I know you will too. WINTERING: The Power of Rest and Retreat in Difficult Times by Katherine May is a brilliant narrative nonfiction book rich with nature writing, poetry and mythology, philosophy, and memoir – all elegantly exploring ways the natural world tries to teach us, over and over, to take a season of deep rest and retreat. Liz Gilbert loved the book saying it is, “every bit as beautiful and healing as the season itself. . . . This is truly a beautiful book.”Wintering is a contemplative, hopeful, consoling book. "I recognized winter," she writes. "I greeted it and let it in...Nature shows that survival is a practice." Here is a video of Katherine talking about Wintering: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0a5APKn8u4I  She has a beautiful way of telling her story and also has started a podcast sharing other peoples’ experiences called The Wintering Sessions. Connect with Katherine on Instagram @katherinemay_ Connect with me on Instagram @motherhoodunstressed and be sure to let me know what you thought of the episode in my latest post! Feeling stressed? Order my CBD and use code Podcast to save! This show is brought to you by: Faherty - Authentic surf style that lasts a lifetime. Click link or use code motherhoodunstressed to save 25%. Hiya Health - Essential super nutrients for kids. Use code unstressed for 50% off.  Want to hear more? Check out some of our most popular past episodes! Seth Godin ON: The Evolution of Stress, Mindfulness, Establishing a Professional Parenting Mindset, and Having the Courage to Ship Creative Work Food Babe Vani Hari on Healthy Cooking Hacks, Food Activism, Pregnancy, and How to Create Your Own Food Babe Kitchen Alexa and Carlos PenaVega on Why You Need to Put Your Marriage First How to Practice Real Self-Love with Best Selling Author Kamal Ravikant