My confusing and complicated relationship with winter

Winter is arguably the worst season. It’s freezing out, and not even a cup of hot cocoa can bring my temperature up. However, I can admit that even winter has its perks. The holidays surrounding it and the activities that I can do make winter slightly bearable. With all the faults and perks, one has to wonder if we simply misunderstand winter, or if it is truly an awful season.
Winter is the host of many holidays, like Christmas, Hanukkah, and Kwanzaa. With the combination of school breaks for holidays and the increased likelihood of extreme weather, school is likely to be out of session, which is always good, because it allows more time with family and friends.
Usually, when it’s a snowy day, my family and I sit inside and watch movies, eat popcorn, or play board games (usually Cards Against Humanity or Rummy). And for Christmas, my family and I cook amazing food, like cheesy potatoes, ham, collard greens, candy yams, and more mouthwatering foods.
My birthday is also in the colder months, as my birthday is Dec. 9. When it’s my bittersweet birthday, I usually sleep in and chill. I used to go sledding, build snowmen, and have snowball fights when it was my birthday when I was younger. But now I’ve grown out of doing those things and want to keep to myself more during my birthday and have a day of calm.
But winter is also the host of harsh weather, frostbite, and hypothermia. With the cold being a problem in the winter, it makes it hard to do any outdoor activities that I normally do, like walking on the trails and playing at parks with my younger siblings. I could have snowball fights, but the cold would affect it.
It restricts me to being indoors most of the time, which often affects my mental health. I feel useless if I’m not outside in nature. I start to feel trapped in my own home, like I’m in solitary confinement at a maximum security prison.
Winter seems like it lasts forever, but it always ends… eventually, and it seems like it comes earlier and earlier and ends later each year. I both love and hate winter. There are some good things about it but there are also things I hate about winter. But it’s a part of life I have to live with.