Winter is one of the harsher seasons, with its biting cold and bitter frost. Winter also happens to have a softer side to it, a gentle beauty.
I hope to capture that beauty and harshness through words and photos.
The first thing that comes to my mind when thinking about winter is the snow. It’s so bright that it’s blinding, and when you touch it, it is so cold that it’s burning. I happen to live in a place that has a lot of snow and ice during the winter months.
Snow has a softer side to it though. Have you ever felt a few snowflakes land on your eyelashes? Or watched snow fall down against a night sky? Those feelings are like no other, and it is then that snow truly shows its delicate side.
Despite the cold, I find that winter is the warmest season. Holding a cup of hot cocoa in your hands, wrapped up in a blanket, curled up near a fire, those are just a few examples of the warmth of winter.
There are some non physical warmths too. Seeing children playing in the snow, watching couples skate along frozen rivers, spotting a beautiful bird through the bare branches of a tree.
When it comes to survival, winter is a difficult month. The frost and ice mean that crops can’t be grown, and the food sources for animals generally get buried underneath piles of snow.
This season is hollow, bitter in its ferocity. But it isn’t as lonely as some may think. Right at the beginning of winter there are multiple holidays that celebrate giving and spending time with friends and family. Towards the middle of the season there is a holiday that celebrates love and romance.
I am quite fond of Christmas lights and I feel that they shouldn’t be restricted to just one holiday in just one month. I suppose that fairy lights are a way of getting around the traditional holiday restrictions, but nothing quite sparks my imagination the way Christmas lights do.
I find the contrast between the dark and vivid green and the stark and clean white to be quite captivating. The green draws you in, fills you with warmth, and reminds you of the life that continues to thrive. The white blinds you, makes you feel cold.
For some reason this apple has not fallen yet. I do not know why it is still hanging on, and I do not know when it will let go. One thing I do know is that the snow piled on top of it is beginning to resemble a hat.
One of the best feelings is warming up by a fire after spending time outside in the freezing cold. To feel the warmth soak away the chill that had latched itself into your bones. To feel the hot air envelope your body. Nothing compares to it.
Curling up in a soft blanket is an amazing feeling during winter, a feeling which my cat Dalmore knows well. I wonder if he dreams about catching the snowflakes that fall gracefully just outside of the window?
Cozy Rebekah 