If anyone asks my favorite season, I always say Fall (or Autumn, if that’s your thing).  Though I’m not the kind of person to have a "favorite" anything.  In fact, I like all of the seasons pretty much equally.

However, when I really think about it, it’s Winter that I like the best.

Why Winter?  It’s not the grey skies, or the bitter cold, that’s for sure.  And I do love the look of a fresh frosting of snow, and the silence of a winter morning.  Swirling flakes calm the soul, and a sleigh ride, snowball fight, or any other snow-filled romp refreshes the spirit.

However, what gives Winter the edge over other seasons, is that it makes the other seasons better. 

Just before springtime you can feel the tension of life, just below the surface, waiting for the opportunity to burst out.  And when that happens, it’s impossible not to take notice and revel in the joy and beauty of it all.  So much color after a season of only shades of grey.

On the other end, Fall prepares us for the coming Winter like a child’s lullaby.  A second stirring of color, dancing on a crisp breeze.  The colder days and longer nights draw us closer together; for warmth and for comfort.  Harvest time brings a celebration of plenty, in preparation for the coming barren months.

I was reflecting on all of this, since we had such nice weather this weekend, and was out enjoying as much of it as possible.  It made me realize that it wasn’t so much the weather now that I liked as it was the contrast to the weather we’d had previously.  At least, that’s what made it stand out so much.

So it turns out, after a little thought, that it isn’t so much that Spring and Fall that are so great, as it is that the difference between them and the Winter is great.  This holds true to many other things in life, too.  Sure, the things are great on their own, but that’s not what makes us take notice.  Just like you can’t appreciate (or even define) light without darkness, so can you not have joy without suffering.  Luckily Winter isn’t all suffering (actually, for some the roles are reversed!).