I stepped outside, knowing the temperature was 30 degrees Fahrenheit, and reported to feel like 20 degrees with the wind chill factor. My Green Bay Packers toboggan was on my head, a thick scarf around my face, gloves on my hands, and a heavy coat and pants protected the rest of my body. I took a deep breath of that cold air, filling my lungs, then slowly releasing my breath and exhaling. Ah, it felt so good. Time to walk and relax and send up thoughts for the Highest Good for all beings on the planet, and friends and family, too. Time “to let go of the rope” as my dear friend Lenton used to say. My canine companion, Reddogg, had chosen to stay home after a short walk, the cold, wet snow on the hard pavement of the road chilling his paws.

I set out at a fast pace, to aid in keeping me warm. Delightful flakes of snow blew into my face. Big flakes, catching on my eyelashes, making me smile. Snow landed like white powder; confectioners sugar on branches of trees, berries, grass, mailboxes, fence posts, barbed wire, and rooftops, coating everything that came into view, except for the birds. The red Cardinals sat in the green Cedars, brilliant against the snow covering their branches. Large Blue Jays made themselves known as they swooped through the air ahead of me. I continued to walk down the frozen, dirt road. And there was Smoochie the cat, her black fur stark against the white surroundings, her white fur on her four paws blending in. She was waiting for me to feed her, and jumped back into the old, red, wooden barn she claimed as her home and her dining room. Most everything except the birds took on the colors of black, gray, and white, like old time photographs, the Tall Beings easily outlined on the horizon against the cloudy sky. I stopped and looked around me, at the swirling snow, marveling at the concept that no two snowflakes are exactly alike. The wonder of it all!

I stood for a moment taking it all in. Such silence the blanket of snow offered me all around. So comforting. I walked on, hearing a quiet “crunch” under my boots. I was hoping to see a deer, but only saw hoofprints, tracks headed north across a snowy field. I blew out a breath, the warm air from my lungs colliding with the cold air all around me, forming a misty cloud in front of me. Magical!

I turned around and headed back home, anticipating a warm, crackling fire in the living room fireplace, sending out orange and yellow flames. Maybe a cup of tasty, steaming hot chocolate. Maybe pull out my computer and sit down and continue to write on my fictional novel, and invite Jean the Nurse to come dance in my imagination.

Winterjoy! Life is Good! Thanks for walking with me. :O)

c   Love, Joan