In Sardinia, with Winter comes Wind. There is a special name for the winds that blow through the Northern part of the island, where we live, Il Maestrale. This famous wind with the lyrical name has helped shape the land here, the craggy coastlines and giant rock formations that take on lives of their own. I imagine Sardinian children in Gallura, the region where we live, making out shapes in the rocks, just like we often do with clouds. I do it too.

If you have ever seen one of my favorite movies, Chocolat, starring Juliet Binoche, you will understand a bit about how powerful a super strong wind can be. In the movie, whenever the North Wind blows, the main character, descended from a line of women healers and mystics, must move to where the wind tells her to go.

So when the wild winds blow here, I take it as a sign to change the air. Living in a tiny house, with a family of five, the living spaces can often begin to feel stagnant. This is one of the reasons why we get the kids outside to play every day, for fresh air, to stir things up. By letting the strong wind that blows across the island into the house, it sweeps away stagnant energy and disperses it. Allow the powerful element of wind to help you cleanse the air and energy in your home, naturally, as it was meant to.

To elevate the power of the wind and help it along, you can also clean the house on windy days, which clears the energy of the home even more; open windows and doors in the house and get a good crosswind going while you clean.These days I do laundry according to the weather

These days I do laundry according to the weather, which helps me stay in touch with other natural elements. Clothes dryers are very rare in Italy, and I love doing laundry on these windy days. The powerful blasts of wind help to dry the clothes quickly and freshen everything up. It is especially important to dry your bed linens outside. We spend many hours every day in our beds, so energy can really begin to build up there. Getting sheets and blankets out into the sun and wind is very cleansing, and it makes your linens smell delicious!

Now that the chaos of the holiday season is quickly approaching keeping household energy clean and flowing free can help reduce stress. Allow nature to help you in this process. If you can start to enjoy certain domestic tasks more, you begin to cultivate Hygge, and a coziness can start to creep in making mundane chores like cleaning the house, and doing the laundry feel invigorating and uplifting.

I give a full run-down on how to do a house cleansing (AND MUCH MORE!) in my book A Guide to Celebrating the 12 Days of Yule: (Heathen-style!): Folklore, Activities, and Recipes For The Whole Family to Enjoy For 12 Days!

To celebrate the season, I am giving away 30+ pages of the book to my readers. It includes Rituals, Folklore, Activities, and Recipes to help you create lasting memories and traditions with your loved ones during the holiday season. Find the details here.