Winter "Blues"

Winter "Blues"

(this photo was taken in mid-December on our way out of Santa's village)

Twinkling Christmas lights amplifying a near-full moon's glow,

The wind still, the twilight quiet,

Children's voices ringing through the clear night, through the years, through the ages, looking for Saint Nicholas and all he represents.....

(this one was taken looking out into my backyard; I love how the blue color of the snow in the late afternoon nearly perfectly matches the view of the sky in the above photo this time of year)

The warm golden hues of summer and fall are gone,

Replaced by a crisp, cold blue,

A blue that surrounds us,

Matching the view on the ground to the view in the sky

(this one was taken at my parents' place in mid-January; we Norwegians like to keep our Christmas lights up as long as possible!)

Finished are the Christmastime festivities, the gift opening, the celebrating around tables full of food, the story-telling around the tree,

Yet the lights remain,

Reminders of the Light of the World whose birth leads us to celebrate each winter,

Reminders, too, that spring and its plentiful daylight will return,

Reminders that in the darkest winter nights of our lives,

"The Light (still) shines in the darkness,

And the darkness (still) cannot overcome it"

(this one was taken on a snowshoe trek in the woods behind my in-laws place on Christmas Eve Day)

The woods are silent,

No breeze rustles the branches,

The crunch of snowshoes echoes harshly through the trees,

The silence and snow surround,

Wrapping a blanket of cold, quiet insulation around those willing to venture out,

Reminding us that it is in silence that we hear the most.

(I shot this from my driveway this afternoon)

I have no words for this one yet. I'm not sure my words for any of these are profound, but thinking of them has kept me positive through this extremely cold and snowy winter. Trying to see the beauty in the difficulty of winter has been helpful for me, though it is definitely getting to be a long one. The Mice and I have been stuck inside for days in a row, since I refuse to make them play outside unless it is above 10 degrees! Sunny Baby Mouse and I ventured out today to see Hubert and take him a treat. The other day I had mentioned to my Uncle that the snow in the backyard was knee-deep on me. Today I realized there are several places where it is hip-high. Thank goodness for knee-high muck boots! Very little on me was soaked with snow; it was definitely worth the little bit of snow we carried inside to have some outdoor adventure-time. We're hoping for sledding weather later in the week!