Sunday, December 21, 2008

The Gift of Winter


Another storm blew in this morning with plenty of snow. By the time worship began at 10:30 the sun was shining, but we were only at "half muster" in terms of congregational numbers. Some of them were from other churches which cancelled worship, so I was proud of our gang for getting out.

There have been lots of disruptions because of the snowstorms on Friday and again this morning. The highways were snarled and air travellers missed flights. While I feel badly for those were disappointed or in danger I have to confess that I love this snow. Yesterday we drove north to Long Sault, the conservation area on the Oak Ridges Moraine. It was cold but the sun shone brightly and the snow glistened. Some skiers had already broken a trail, so we skiied in their tracks through the woods. It was a glorious first cross-country run of the season in a place of quiet and beauty.

I posted a photo of trilliums from a Spring walk at Long Sault and then Fall colours from the same area. This Winter photo is a reminder of the gift of all seasons. The long blue shadows speak of the Winter Solstice and the brief daylight hours.
The word is that this will be the first year in many where the entire country will experience a white Christmas. Great!

1 comment:

Deborah Laforet said...

That's wonderful news. Our farmers out here need the moisture that the snow brings. I keep hoping that this is a good sign for our earth that the snow has come back, but I also know that we have a long ways to go in healing our earth.