January 2025 Chamber Connections | Embracing Stillness: A Winter Escape to Hocking Hills

For my birthday in January, my husband and I typically head to the Hocking Hills region, spending time away in a cabin. We are frequently blessed with snowy days and nights in front of a fireplace, disconnected from the outside world.  With spotty cell service and no TV, we spend our time stoking the fire and talking and planning for the new year.

There are also many hours when we remain silent, gazing out the windows into the forest, watching for deer or the occasional turkey. We bundle up to hike into the quiet of a winter day, where our footsteps are the only noises we hear, as we take in peace and serenity. Even as we venture further up the hill, I am comforted by finding the trail of smoke billowing up from the cabin’s chimney, below us in the valley. The safety and warmth will be there on our return.

I am reminded on each trip to the cabin how unplugging from the busyness of our lives and returning to a slower and less hectic place is critical to our well-being.  Visiting the same space for over a decade, we know the lumpy side of the couch, which pan to use for spaghetti sauce, and which part of the wood pile has the best logs to start the fire. There is familiarity in this space, as well as in our hearts. This quiet time and place matters. Stillness and snowfall can bring tranquility to a troubled mind.  A roaring fire is the reassurance that we will be safe.

I send peace to each of you in 2025. May you find those moments of stillness and connection.