It sounds as if we all have tales to tell of the many inches of snow that fell so fast over Western Washington this week. I'm relieved that for the most part we've all made our way safely through this experience. Emily has had a chimney fire, complete with red fire-truck Christmas lights in her front yard, and several of us have 'ziggy' road stories of trips to town, but we're all healthy, safe and warm, and for that I am thankful.
Danny and I had a good walk this morning around the neighborhood this morning. Church was cancelled, so all that hard work and sacrifice for the choir won't be paying off this year. Too bad, we had some really beautiful music prepared. Since neither one of us sit still all that well, we bundled up in double sweaters, double pants, hats and gloves, and I had a chance to test out my pretty aqua Gore-Tex boots. (They worked great; toasty toes for miles.)
We truly love this little piece of heaven we get to live in. It's just a collection of big and little, old and new, mostly humble old houses, but the people here are wonderful. There is so much laughing together, helping each other, saying hello to your fellow walkers and ice-scapers, hunkering down together, watching out for each other. Knowing you can count on your neighbors is a wonderful luxury, a throw-back to another era, and I'm grateful to be here in this piece of the vineyard.
I hope I captured the silent beauty, the quiet, peaceful way nature has drawn a blanket over the hurried, harried world we live in. Here by the water, the pace has slowed to almost nothing, only the creatures of nature are out. This morning we saw raccoon tracks, a Great Gray Heron, an osprey, bald eagle, wood ducks, mallards, and a couple I don't know. The ice is interesting, because it doesn't really freeze on salt water well. Mostly it freezes on the beach and the incoming tide lifts it up and carries it out. I tried to capture how pretty that looks, but I know, "ya really had to be there."
The old wreck has taken another hit with this weather. It seems to be listing to port a little more. I don't know how it continues to stay upright, there is almost nothing left to hold it up. We keep watching, one day we'll walk down and it will have collapsed. It's changed alot in the (how long is it?six years?) time we've been here.
Stay warm until we thaw. Seasons; we need the contrast of them all to make a year. If you pause for a moment it isn't hard to draw parallels to our lives, is it. Love to you all, in seasons of sunshine and shadow.
