I used to love winter. Wild weather appealed to me, and sitting by a roaring fire while the snow came down outside seemed magical. I love it less now. Maybe because the cold bites deeper, and I worry more about my horse this time of year. Also, spending part of the afternoon pouring boiling water over the ice on the steps leading to my front door, and then chopping at said ice with the snow shovel wasn’t a lot of fun. Still, there are things that are beautiful. The fallen snow has reached that stage where the crystals become prisms, and throw back the light of the sun like diamonds. They flash and glitter, and rainbow colors peep out, and are quickly banished. Add to that the wind which was quite ferocious today. It picked up loose snow, and sent in scudding across the frozen roads. But it didn’t blow like dust instead it formed swirls like winter ghosts racing to find shelter beneath the frosted piñon and juniper trees.
Soon it will be the solstice and life will return.
