This Winter Broke Me — And Then Spring Whispered Hope

This winter and early spring have felt especially heavy for so many of us here in the UP and across the border in Marinette county. The long stretches of bitter cold, the heavy snow that kept piling up, the gray skies that seemed to linger forever — it wasn’t just the weather. For those walking through grief, loss, or deep weariness, it mirrored what our hearts were already carrying: the sense that everything feels broken and that spring might never come.I get it. I spend my days in Cedar River, where the winters can be long and isolating. I know what it’s like to wonder if the light will ever return, if the days will ever feel lighter again.

But spring is finally arriving here in the UP, and it brings a quiet, stubborn hope with it.

Spring has always been my favorite season. I can hardly wait to get my fingers in the rich soil, already anticipating the joy of my flower garden.

New life doesn’t wait for perfect conditions. Green shoots push through frozen ground and cracked earth. The days grow longer — hallelujah! — and the world begins to breathe again.

That same gentle resurrection hope is yours in Christ. He doesn’t abandon us in the deepest winter. He walks right beside us through it, and He brings life — not by pretending the broken places never existed, but by meeting us there and filling them with His presence and healing.

If this season has left you feeling worn down or alone, please know you’re not. Hope & Healing Companion is here to walk with you, one gentle, Christ-centered step at a time.

Spring green is coming. And so is healing.

With you in the journey,

Julie DesJarlais, MDiv, CPE