From My Mind to....

Winter's Here

It's December 22nd.  What's significant about that date?

It's the first day since June 20th that days are not getting shorter ... at least here in the northern hemisphere. For me, the days are half full again.    Actually, that's not entirely true--pretty much all my days are half full.  Busy, but fulfilling.

Oh, don't get me wrong--I LOVE winter.  I don't mind the cold (I know enough when to come in out of it).  I like the clear night skies, and the crisp, frosty mornings when I go out to start my car.  And I rather like the bleak, stark nature of the trees, devoid of leaves. 

Being in Missouri, though, means I seldom see snow.  We get a dusting every now and them.  Maybe we'll get a few inches.  But I miss the the serious snowfalls we would get in Maine when I was growing up.  Here we get more ice and freezing rain than snow.  Like the end of last week--freezing rain and low temps that caused lots of accidents across Missouri, some of them deadly.  Under those conditions all one can do is STAY HOME.  Four-wheel drive doesn't work on ice.  Period.

Viewed from one's deck under the sun, low in  the sky, the ice-covered trees and fields are simply beautiful.  Work may be calling ... but it can certainly wait.

It's time to enjoy winter.