The Days Were Clear and Bright
The days were clear and bright. Laura and Mary stood on chairs by the window and looked out across the glittering snow at the glittering trees. Snow was piled all along their bare, dark branches, and it sparkled in the sunshine. Icicles hung from the eaves of the house to the snowbanks, great icicles as large at the top of Laura’s arm. They were like glass and full of sharp lights.
Laura Ingalls Wilder (Little House in the Big Woods)
One of my favorite things to see in the winter are icicles. We don’t get them very often since our home is well insulated, but when the sun shines brightly on a cold day it melts the snow on our dark roof. This makes icicles form on our front porch. They’re so lovely with the blue skies behind them and the sun making them sparkle. They don’t last long, one moment they’re gracing the front porch and the next they’re gone. I’m glad I got out to capture a few photos when I did, they were beautiful.
It took me a few patient moments to catch this drip falling from the icicle. If you look at the large image you can see that the drop reflects the ground upside down, wonderful!
Icicles are one of my favorite parts of winter, they always seem to come as the days get longer and sun gets warmer. I especially love them on days like this when they sparkle in the sunlight, it’s almost as if they’re announcing the coming of spring! Most likely there will be no more icicles this winter. They will give way to leaves that will clog the gutters.
What’s your favorite part of winter, the snow, the ice, the cooler weather for your southerners?
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Quote of the Day: Helen Keller
I long to accomplish great and noble tasks,
but it is my chief duty and joy to accomplish humble tasks
as though they were great and noble.
~Helen Keller
I thought of the earthworm when I read this quote. Always working away under the ground, not often seen or appreciated. I can really relate to this quote, as an introvert I’m not one to volunteer for those out in the open tasks. I find much more satisfaction and reward in working behind the scenes, doing those jobs others often find repetitive & boring. Gardening is my favorite humble task, when planting, raking and weeding you can let your mind wander while your fingers and hand work away. You get a deep sense of satisfaction at a job well done and the bounty and beauty from you garden, and these they are often only enjoyed by you.
What’s your favorite humble task?
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Quote of the Day: Victor Hugo
“Laughter is the sun that drives winter from the human face.”
– Victor Hugo
Found this quote the other day, then I was looking through my photos to find one to go along. I found this series of my nephew and I thought they went perfectly together. Laughter does cure just about anything, especially those winter blues! We make sure we laugh a lot around here at Chiot’s Run!
I’m a big quote person, love love love them. I’ve always collecting them and had quotes pasted up all around my living space. You may notice I post all kind of quotes here.
What’s your favorite inspirational quote/proverb?
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Quote of the Day: Henry David Thoreau
Nature will bear the closest inspection.
She invites us to lay our eye level with her smallest leaf,
and take an insect view of its plain.
-Henry David Thoreau
I love this quote and thought about it when I was taking a few photos the other day. I had to add this quote to one of the photos, it was a little to small to show up well here and be easy to read so I put it on Flick – check it out.
I have a small fig tree that I’m overwintering in the basement. It was dormant for a few months, but it’s starting to wake up for the season. It has beautiful little leaves that have emerged from the buds, they’re so beautiful! They’re tiny at the moment, only about an inch tall, but so intricate in detail. Plant are truly amazing things! I’m always amazed at the tiny new leaves that appear when plants are coming out of dormancy.
What’s most amazing to you about plants?
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Quote of the Day: Hal Borland
I really enjoy living in an area that has four distinct seasons. I grew up in South America where we had a dry season and a rainy season, and there wasn’t much difference between them except the amount of rain. Here in NE Ohio we have winter, spring, summer, and fall. It’s hard to pick a favorite, I really enjoy them all. Each one has it’s beauty and it’s difficulties, but it’s nice to experience them all.
What seasons do you have in your neck of the woods? Do you have a favorite?
