Winter Weather At Last: A Fairytale World

All photos by me.

After spending most of my childhood in Texas, where there is very little in the way of a discernible change in the seasons aside from hot and hotter, I have an utter and complete fascination with snow. For a child who loved reading the fairy tales of Hans Christian Anderson and the various Red, Blue, and Violet Fairy Books, all of which have tales of Snow Queens and winter lands, the rarity of snow or even sleet was extremely disappointing.

Thus, when my family moved to an area where there was at least one good snowfall every winter, I developed the habit of wandering for hours in our woods every time it snowed, reveling in the enchanting sound of falling snow and the way the ordinary world could be transformed in a matter of minutes into the world of the fae, dangerous and beautiful, silent and yet full of music.

To an artist's eyes as well there is endless fascination and inspiration. Ice and snow exhibit some of the most exquisite, detailed patterns one will ever find. If you bother to slow down and look closely, new worlds reveal themselves to the naked eye. I invite you to try it next time you're outside in the snow.

Chance of Snow

By Hiroshige, via Wikimedia Commons

There's a chance of snow in the forecast, so... cue falling snow effect!

Thunderstorms

Oh, how I love thunderstorms. I eagerly await the wonderful, wild thunderstorms of the summer each year. The wind blows in carrying the scent of wet woods and fields, and soon enough, you hear the distant rumble of thunder.

photo by Ginger, Ozarks Walkabout http://ozarkswalkabout.com/backpacking-at-hercules-glades-wilderness/

Then it descends, all the wild wind, and hard rain drops pelting my skin, and piercing, crackling lightning. I breathe deeply, and sit back to watch... but sometimes I run out into it, glorying in the power and might and heedless wildness of it all. If I could throw myself onto the wind and be born away, I would be gone in a flash of lighting.

photo by pchow, http://www.flickr.com/photos/pchow98/favorites/?view=lg

Cold Fronts and Early Mornings

This morning I dragged myself out of bed at 6:00 as part of my effort to to become an early riser... and I was immediately rewarded. A cold front had blown in over night, and after finishing breakfast, the wind blowing outside the window coaxed me outside and into the crisp, cool air. What delight to feel that first tingle of fall in my fingertips! Even as I write this, I am listening to the rush of the wind in the trees and breathing in the scent of woodsmoke. Numerous plants are blooming their last few rounds of flowers before it becomes cold for good in the next month or two.

First came the lovely, glowing roses... 

Then the lovely "surprise lilies," which sprang up after all the rain.

The gardenias are still blooming away as well, and there are spiderworts all over the yard, hiding in the ivy and grasses.

This lovely morning glory had its face turned toward the morning sun.

And last, but not least - the first real sign of fall. Gather ye rosebuds while you may, because soon it will be chilly and damp!