Now it really is November, as we all knew it would be one day. Overnight, the wind and temperatures remembered their purpose – to chill and nip us, and give everyone a reason to cuddle up and sleep.

The cold reminds us of our good fortune. To be able to come inside and warm up, to linger in in the security of lights burning, to accept the companionship of darkness in quiet and safety. We have more than we need to face winter, and most of us know that isn’t the case for everyone.

This week was full of the ways I need my friends – and I hope a few of the ways I help when I can. Sometimes, when Sunday arrives, and I look back at everything that has happened, I can’t believe it. As much as I try to pull back with all the resistance my anxiety can muster, life still hurtles me forward. Events that must happen, like groceries and doctors visits. Moments that offer themselves as a path to a different future, like a disappointment or a kiss. And the disruptions we go looking for – another window full of flowers, a farewell to a favorite ghost.

Bundle all that happens into winters’ nights, to cure and transmute with a power that moves so slowly it can’t be seen. But we can feel it in the November air, sparkling our blessings like all the stars in the chill black sky.