I turn 24 this month. I am excited! I love birthdays and any reason to celebrate. For me, birthdays offer time to reflect, see family, and be happy without worrying about the outside world. I also get cake!

Being a life long New Hampshirite and a December baby, winter has been at the core of my being from the start. I love everything about winter – the cold air, snow, long nights. It creates the opportunities for warm drinks, sweaters, and the quietness that can only come with snowfall. There is nothing quite like winter, especially in New Hampshire.

I am not someone who enjoys change. I like my traditions and continuity. Emotional resilience to climate change is a balancing act. I need to mourn what is lost, feel the urgency, and act where I can, all while avoiding apathy or depression that will demotivate me. How can one accept climate change in a way that preserves internal stability while also refusing to accept the systems that have brought us here? It is a hard line to walk.

Hope can be found in action. As the winters grow warmer, I put more effort into my sustainability work, professionally and personally. Though I am the first in line to talk about how individual actions are not going to solve systemic problems, doing things to reduce my greenhouse gas emissions and other environmental impacts makes me feel powerful and connected to the larger movement. As always, I am focused on community building as a centerpiece of sustainability solutions.

I try to enjoy the sunshine and warmth, even though it makes me sad to see the trees bare of snow. Some traditions can continue – piano playing, cookie decorating, and time with family – while others, such as skiing, music focused on snow, and hot chocolate nights, grow more precious as the opportunities for appreciation become fewer.

There are significant impacts of climate change, ones that reshape entire neighborhoods, economies, and lives. The loss of winter can feel small in comparison. Yet, it is worth observing. It is important to recognize what has been taken from us. It is necessary to realize how much the environment impacts our culture, day to day life, and our humanity. As much as we can try to convince ourselves, we are not separate from nature or the planet.

There is no clear resolution to this blog post. The resolution is, indeed, ongoing. It is a constant effort to make the world better. I hope that this next year brings a great amount of climate action and that if I have children someday, they will also get to know the joys of every season, without every adult telling them that it used to be better before climate change. I will leave you with a photo from the snowy White Mountains and well wishes for the new year.