Wonderland

As winter wraps its long, velvety gray arms around us, and we settle in for the long ride towards spring, I remain grateful for being able to witness the turning of the seasons. As much as this season has its dull, dreary days and wet, wild nights, it also contains a wondrous beauty, and much life still abounds. I look out on my meadow, and at first see only the dead grasses, bare trees and ice-covered pond. But then, I see a bluebird flitting from a tree to a bush, and now a squirrel scurries quickly (is there another way to scurry?) across the lawn. There is a slight breeze that is making the cattails quiver, and if I squint I can see the dormant buds on the maple tree next to the deck. LIFE GOES ON, the world whispers. I do well to stop, and look, and listen.