Monday, March 2, 2009

Snow

Bonjour,

Last night there was much clacking and clicking at the windows. Today we awoke to this sight. Even fierce gusts could not dislodge the white burden from each branch. Fortunately, unlike reported situations further west, we do not have such a burden that limbs are breaking. So it is mostly pretty, the children are out of school and sledding, and traffic is interrupted. A day snatched from routine. A snow day.

The bird activity was great around the feeders, and the feathered creatures look pretty sitting up in branches with the snow. The grey and yellow birds were the most frantic, and had the largest numbers to quarrel about the feeder perches, with the largest and yellowest usually getting their way. Like some people. But the others wait patiently and there is a turn for all.

These days of quiet and snow are good for thinking. A gentle pensiveness. Memories come unbidden, of other snows, of younger children, of your own childhood. My childhood had no snow in it, of this I can assure you. If Etienne had not been keen on getting these photos with moi in the snow, I am not sure either of us would have been out here. But it is pretty, I will admit.

6 comments:

L'Adelaide said...

these are gorgeous pictures! I especially love the first one of the tree...it looks like a wonderland of white....the others look like the flocked christmas trees of my youth but ever so much prettier! and grenouille(do you know i have to look every time i spell his name??) is so cute, he brought a giggle when I saw him amongst the crispy white....in all, simply magical!

June Saville said...

No snow in my childhood either - except for one glorious day when we visited the mountains well south of here and rode down a hill on a piece of iron - an improvised bobsled.
There - snow and memories eh?
June in Oz

Steve Emery said...

Linda - I almost didn't recognize the Avatar - but then I recalled the tulips (he bought them out, as I recall)... Thank you, and I'm glad Grenouille and I could give you a laugh.

June - I know much of the world gets no snow. Seems a weird notion to me. Like a world without Robins in spring... But for you it would be weird, I guess, to picture a world without kookaburras.

I am picturing your improvised bobsled ride - I'm recalling the first ride I remember in a sled, in my Dad's lap, I think - a breathless wild memory. I imagine you were older, though; I was probably just a few years old.

Anonymous said...

Great photos. I miss the snow. Here in the Arabian Gulf we don't have snow - except for once this year which was a total surprise for everyone!! Temptures here go up to 40 centrigrade in the summer!!

Genie Sea said...

Love the photos! At this point I am glad they are photos and not something I have to see outside my window. :)

lisahgolden said...

I have such fond memories of snow that sometimes I feel guilty that I've deprived my kids of those same kinds of memories....