Winter Slumber

In today's story, Winter Slumber, Grandad teaches Meredith a gentle lesson

Today's prompt was inspired by the start of 2026. Happy New Year! May you stay safe and see a turn toward better days. 

More about Susan Quilty

Susan Quilty mainly writes novels, including two standalone novels and her YA series: The Psychic Traveler Society.  Susan's short stories for Freely Written are created during quick writing breaks and shared as a way to let go of perfection and encourage writing for fun.

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Transcript

Below is the transcript for Season 1, Episode 155 of Freely Written, a podcast by author Susan Quilty:

Welcome to Freely Written, where a simple prompt leads to a little unplanned fiction. 

[Light piano music]

Hi, friends! I’m Susan Quilty, and today’s prompt is Winter Slumber

Happy New Year! It is now 2026, and today’s prompt was inspired by the start of a new year. Now, some people really love to start a year fresh with big goals and ambitious resolutions. I also like to think of goals for the new year, but I’m not in a rush to get to them.

Winter is a time of hibernation and rest. At least in the Northern Hemisphere, where we have several cold, maybe snowy months ahead. Our bodies are primed to stay inside where it’s safe and cozy until the warmth of spring. Maybe spending some extra time reading and dreaming. 

Which seems like a good time to remind you that I have several novels and books available for both adult and young adult readers. Please check them out at SusanQuilty.com or search for “Susan Quilty” wherever you buy books. I really appreciate your support!

Essentially, I see winter as a time to lay some groundwork and focus on gradually growing into the new year. With that in mind, I chose today’s prompt as an opening to explore the idea of winter rest. I then used my typical Freely Written process, where I sit down with my prompt and write whatever comes to mind, with no planning and very little editing, before recording the story to share it with you. 

Here’s where that led today:

Winter Slumber

Meredith shied away from the kitchen and living room, sticking to the shadowy hallway between the spaces where the grown-ups were either making dinner or playing cards. She had already fled the upstairs bedrooms where the older children were either playing video games or watching online videos. 

The house was filled with cousins, aunts, uncles, and family friends. This was the latest in a string of family gatherings that stretched from Thanksgiving through the holidays and into the new year. It was the first weekend of the new year, which was their biggest family gathering. 

Not everyone came to the other holiday events. They were invited, of course, but some of the families took turns going to other families—in-laws, they called them. Meredith thought that was a funny name for other families. Like they’d get in trouble with the police if they didn’t go there sometimes instead of coming over with the rest of Meredith’s family. 

Meredith’s family—her mom, dad, and older sister Gabby—did not have an in-law family they ever went to see. When she tried to ask about it, her mom just said that she didn’t have another family than the family she’d made with her dad. Which only sort of answered the question, but Meredith was content to leave it at that. 

Gabby was upstairs with the cousins who were watching online videos. They’d chased her out when one of the videos said some of the bad words Meredith wasn’t supposed to know. She’d tried the room with the other cousins then, but there were only so many game controllers, and it was never time for the turn they kept promising her.

Meredith wasn’t the youngest of the cousins, but the youngest two were a baby her Aunt Lou was always carrying around and a toddler named Joey who followed her around with annoying questions whenever he caught sight of her. They were both in the living room where Meredith’s mom and some of the aunts and uncles were playing cards, so she couldn’t go in there.

The kitchen was all grown-ups—Meredith’s dad and the aunts and uncles who liked to cook. If Meredith went in there, she knew she’d be roped into setting the tables or filling the salt and pepper shakers. The kind of boring help they always asked for, instead of giving her a paring knife or letting her measure ingredients the way her dad did at home. 

With nowhere else to go, Meredith crept along the dim hallway by herself. Until she saw a crack of light under the basement door. At home, the basement was her playroom. It had a dollhouse, and a racetrack, and a TV where the whole family watched movies. But this was the basement at her grandad’s house, and she’d been told there was nothing down there but the laundry and a place to store old boxes. 

Studying the yellow line of light beneath the door, Meredith decided it was time to see for herself what was in this basement. 

She carefully opened the door, checking that no one was watching. The wooden stairs ended at a concrete floor with a bare light bulb in the ceiling overhead. Meredith held the plain railing tightly as she slowly descended the open-backed stairs. Metal shelves filled with boxes blocked her view from one side of the stairs. The other side offered a clear view of a large open area that held scattered boxes, an old exercise bike, sheet-covered furniture, and a clothes rack draped in a special fabric cover that closed with a long zipper. 

The lights were not on in that part of the basement, but light spilled in from the bottom of the stairs and from an area farther back. Meredith paused, startled by a whooshing sound, until she recognized the sound of a washing machine churning away in the distance. 

Creeping toward the lighted area, Meredith saw a long workbench beneath a wall filled with hanging tools. There was a standing tool chest next to it and a set of metal shelves that held jars of nails and screws, alongside scrap wood and other odds and ends.

She heard another sound, a soft humming, and slowly moved forward until Grandad’s back came into view. He was standing in front of a table that sat beneath long rows of light. His arms were moving as he fiddled with something on the table, but his back blocked Meredith’s view. 

“Grandad,” Meredith called softly, not wanting to scare him, but he jumped all the same before turning in surprise. 

“Oh, Meredith,” he responded with a warm smile. “What are you doing down here?”

“I don’t know.” Meredith shrugged and looked down at her feet. She was waiting for him to send her back to the other kids, but he invited her forward instead.

“Come see what I’m doing.” He stepped aside, letting Meredith see his rows of tiny dirt-filled pots under the long lights.

“Are you growing flowers?” Meredith stood on tiptoe to see over the edge of the tall table, while Grandad brought over a sturdy stepstool. 

“Climb on up. Careful now,” he said, putting a steadying hand on her small back. “They aren’t flowers. Can you guess what else they are?”

Meredith looked at a flat surface beside the pots where she saw stacks of packets showing pictures of vegetables. 

“It’s a tiny garden!” she cried in delight. “Is this where you grow food when it’s too cold outside?”

Grandad’s garden was a favorite part of visiting in the warmer months. Meredith would walk along the rows, checking how much the vegetables had grown and asking when it would be time to pull them out of the warm ground. 

“In a way,” Grandad answered with a grin. “These are the seedlings I will use in the garden this spring. Or they will be, once the seeds take root and begin to grow.”

He showed her the special grow lights that kept the soil warm. 

“It’s too cold for the seeds to grow outside, so I start them here and move them to the garden when they’re bigger and stronger.” 

He began to point out which pots were tomatoes, peppers, onions, spinach, kale, and herbs. Many of the plants Meredith recognized from helping in the garden last year. 

“You don’t put the seeds in the ground outside?” Meredith scrunched her face, thinking about the cartoons she’d seen with seeds being dropped into rows of dirt and popping up as plants. 

“Oh, some seeds like to grow outside, after the spring thaw. Like peas, and cucumber, and lettuce… You can help me plant them this year if you’d like.”

“Yes, please,” Meredith eagerly agreed. She had one finger held just above the dirt in one of the pots. “Can I touch it?” 

“Sure, but don’t dig in. We don’t want to disturb the seeds.” 

Meredith lightly tapped the soft dirt, then looked closely at the other pots. 

“You won’t see anything sprouting up yet,” Grandad said. “But I’ll tell your Mom and Dad to bring you around when they’re starting to grow.”

“Why can’t you wait and plant everything outside?” Meredith held her palms up to feel the gentle warmth from the lights. 

Grandad was quiet for a moment.

“Well, different plants grow at different times of the year, and winters here are too cold for these seeds to take root. See, under the soil, these seeds are slowly sending out roots to soak up the energy they need to grow.

People are kind of like that, too. When January comes around, a lot of people want to jump into the new year and make themselves over, but winter isn’t the time for that. Winter is meant for slumber. It’s for dreaming and making plans while you stay all cozy under warm blankets or reading by the fire.”

“And then the dreams get stronger?” Meredith asked, thinking of the seeds taking root. 

“Exactly!” Grandad beamed. “You’re a very smart little girl. The plans you dream during winter slumber get bigger and stronger so you’re ready to start chasing them come spring.”

The idea of people chasing their dreams through sunny spring gardens brought a smile to Meredith’s small face. 

“Can I help you put these in the garden?” Meredith asked. “When it’s spring?”

“Of course! I’d be happy for the help!” 

They stood together quietly. Meredith looking down at the rows of soil, and Grandad looking down at Meredith. 

“But since it’s winter now,” Grandad suggested, “how about some hot chocolate and a story?”

Meredith agreed happily, adding, “And then can we dream up more things to do in the spring?”

“Of course, little one,” Grandad agreed, and they went back upstairs to find a cozy seat by the fireplace. 

The End 

Thanks for listening. It took me a while to lead that one to my idea of winter renewal, but I got there eventually. As the new year unfolds, it will bring opportunities and challenges. Give yourself the gift of rest as much as you can during these cold winter months, so you will be ready for whatever spring may bring. 

Until next time, try a little free writing of your own. Let go of any planning and see where your imagination takes you. 

[Light piano music]