Cocoa Meditation

I’ve written on various ways to stay warm and reduce home heating bills in cold weather, from moderate physical exertion while wearing layered clothing, to pretending to read a book while basking in free public warmth at the library. In general, the smaller the micro comfort zone heated the better, (better to heat the room you are occupying than the entire house.) It has been about an hour now since my wife left for work and I turned down the thermostat. I’m beginning to feel a bit chilled, so I will warm the smallest micro space possible by warming my body from the inside out with a cup of microwaved cocoa. I often do this as my mid-morning pick-me-up, sometimes hot black tea or sometimes sweet coffee. This keeps me going until I have hot soup for lunch. Today there is a raw wind blowing, but it is sunny, so I take my hot chocolate to the enclosed sun porch and pick up some rays on my hands and face. Cold hands can make you feel miserable, so the first thing I do is wrap fingers around the cup for a couple minutes and warm them thoroughly. Next I do a little sniffing aroma-therapy and then proceed to slow-warm my innards with hot drink while my face basks in the sun. Physically, I’m in the Midwest; mentally, I’m in the Caribbean. “Hey Maaan, you want some more rum?”
What a gift to have the imagination of a child!