There is something magical about the
first snowfall – not the dustings or heavy frosts – but the first real
snowfall, six inches or more! It evokes memories of igloos built into the
drifts the town plows pushed into the edge of the yards and driveways; huge
snowmen as high as basketball nets; my sons shoveling the sidewalks and stairs,
eventually distracting themselves with snowball fights, only coming inside to
change into dry clothes and head back out!
Through my kitchen window I watch the
woods fill up. The woods are lovely, dark, and deep…" and may be
lucky enough to see a fox or deer foraging, watching birds line up on the split
rail fence, their feathery weight not leaving any impressions, just their feet
leaving stick figure tracks as they flit off escaping the wind and flakes.
Cardinals were my father’s favorites even though he said they were mean birds,
stealing other birds’ eggs or something. I can’t remember what their guilty
pleasure is, but their color is vivid as they flash through the world gone
white. I watch for them and they do not disappoint.
Now my sons are grown, I can curl up
with a good book and tea, until I get the "doggy guilt trip look"
from Lucy. She wants to play in the snow too! Like most dogs, she loves trying
to catch snowballs and "plowing" through the accumulation with her
big black nose sniffing out rodents – and there! Unexpectedly, we see a mole
tunneling his way from the basement to the woods, stopping halfway to pop up
like a jack-in-the-box to gauge his progress and get his bearings and then back
under – alas not safely! A hawk has spotted the black shadow and swoops down
grabbing his dinner, then disappearing back into the woods. How do they fly
with such wing span and not crash into trees and branches? It’s a startling and
amazing thing to watch!
Unfortunately, through it snowed
throughout the day looking serene and beautiful and filled with promise, the
accumulation was not the forecasted six inches! It was just enough to give
everything a white coating – and marginal shoveling! As darkness falls, the
world takes on soft illumination from the white ground cover, and after
building a nice fire, how awesome to note that To Have and Have Not is
on TV and watch Bogey & Bacall do their thing! Snow days – adult style, the
world settling as we enjoy our unexpected day off. Now I hear the fir trees
soughing/Great silence and singing! This is my home. Has anyone said it
better than Henrik Ibsen in Peer Gynt?
No comments:
Post a Comment