Let the Sunshine In

During most of the summer, my goal is to stay out of the sun, which feels too hot and too brazen. But in winter at the cabin, I’ve learned how to harness solar energy to stay warm.

In these cold days of winter, the temperatures at night at the cabin plunge below zero, so everything freezes (thank goodness I don’t have plumbing). In summer, I love that there is little separation between me and the outdoors. But that lack of insulation in winter means the cold spills in between the cracks in the walls and up from the floorboards.

When I arrive, the cabin is usually colder inside than outside, because the sun heats up the outdoor air, while all the drawn shades prevent the sun from delivering its warmth inside. If it’s 36 degrees outside, it’s 23 inside. In the kitchen, all the water in the jugs—some for drinking and others for washing—are frozen.  The cans of soup and beans in the cabinet are frozen, and the olive oil has congealed. The cold even penetrates the inside of the refrigerator. In my first winter at the cabin, I found exploded Coke cans, and now I’m careful what I leave here in the winter.

If all this frozen food and water shows the strength of cold, I’ve also learned the power of the sun. The table next to the window faces east, and once I open the shades and the sunlight starts streaming in, the cabin starts warming up, with some help from the electric baseboard heater.

Everything I think I’m going to need for the day I put on the table to start thawing out in the sun, so the table is soon covered with water containers, olive and safflower oil, and cans of vegetable soup thawing out. Although a whole day of heating the kitchen barely begins to melt the solid block of ice in the water container, if I put the container on the table, within a few hours, the sun has melted enough water to boil on the stove for doing the dishes.

The sun works on me the same way.  When I first arrive, I bundle up in my sweatshirt, a hat, and fingerless gloves while I work at my computer. It can take about two to three hours for the temperature to warm up to 60, even with the portable heater next to me. But the sun feels good, and I’m like a cat basking in its warmth. It feels like life, like a soft thaw of everything. I remember a song my parents sang to us when we were children: “Let the sunshine in, face it with a grin. Open up your heart and let the sunshine in.”

Comments

[Jade]

In the winter i stay in the rooms facing the sun too. People often say winter is a time of rest and hibernation but if you don't have central heating its a tiring time because you fight the cold. I love all seasons though and the sun make me incredibly happy in winter. More than happy: grateful.

[Barb]

Your writing of the cold is vivid and true. I know that song!