The Consolations of Winter

Winter’s not all bad.  The day begins well for us.  Winter light. If we push breakfast just a little bit later than usual – just before 8 o’clock say – we can watch the sun rise, and the sky lighten and brighten in Neapolitan ice-cream colours as we sit near the kitchen window and chomp through our cereal.

Go outside in the daylight, and we can enjoy the snowdrops, and watch green shoots thrusting through the soil.

The trees are handsome, statuesque as they thrust their naked branches skyward.

Long shadows reach across the fields in the thin, clear January light.

 

And back in the house … there’s still some Christmas cake left in the tin.

 

 

#January Light

Author: margaret21

I'm retired and live in North Yorkshire, where I walk , write, volunteer and travel as often as I can.

44 thoughts on “The Consolations of Winter”

      1. hee hee, squares does seem to have that effect. We have all been affected with square eyes at some point or other – one of the reasons it is only quarterly!

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  5. And without winter we wouldn’t appreciate the arrival of spring as much. Winter trees are my favourites – I love the structure of them. And those long shadows!

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  6. A beautiful post Margaret and one I can relate to in real time. Having my summer holiday in Ireland and loving the soft light ( and snow drops).

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  7. Lovely – January is always better with clear skies and light. We had snow, rain, and ice Friday into Saturday. I fell on my rear quite unceremoniously on a patch of ice on the driveway Saturday afternoon. Sunday, the sun shined bright and yesterday, too. I watched the sun set on my way home and could feel that the days were a bit longer yesterday – it feels good to know that the future holds more brightness and light than darkness. Peace for the new year!

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  9. I see you’ve beautifully captured some of the fabulous recent sunrises. Low winter light makes for interesting photos as long as the sun doesn’t get stuck behind a continuous blanket of grey cloud – we need more high pressure please.

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  10. Yes, I’m envious of the Christmas cake too. Lovely uplifting post. Arrived back home last night and woke this morning to a heavy frost and stunning light. There are plenty of consolations in winter!

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  11. Sorry Margaret, I tried to post some words on your blog and didn’t succed en it… Thanks a lot for all the travels you allow le to do through your beautiful and often magical pictures. And thanks for reminding me to look at all the bits of beauty and pleasure sourrounding me, even in winter ! Love. Mireille

    Le 21/01/2020 à 09:17, From Pyrenees to Pennines a écrit : > WordPress.com > margaret21 posted: “Winter’s not all bad.  The day begins well for > us.  Winter light. If we push breakfast just a little bit later than > usual – just before 8 o’clock say – we can watch the sun rise, and the > sky lighten and brighten in Neapolitan ice-cream colours as we sit n” >

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  12. Your lovely post transported me away from our stormy evening with frighteningly torrential rain, a little hail, and two power outages so far because of the lightning. Best unplug the laptop and go to bed I think. Enjoy the lovely light and the lengthening days. I really like your photo of the bare tree reflected in the river.

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    1. There have ben some lovely reflections in the water lately. Some calm, clear cold weather. Lovely. Unlike your own. I hope the rain – which I know you need – becomes more moderate soon. Torrential’s quite damaging, isn’t it?

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      1. Calm and clear sounds lovely, even if cold. Here the weather is so variable. Last week here where we are it went from a max of 42.5C one day to a max of about 25C the next with lots of rain. Although we need rain as the water table is low, we are not in a drought situation in our specific area. And yes torrential rain is damaging for many, with some being more vulnerable than others. As parts of the country are having tremendous rain storms, others are still trapped in drought.

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  15. I love the idea of a Neopolitan ice cream sky! One of the few things I dislike about living in France is winter mornings – still dark at 8.30 a.m. The winter trees mean I can see more of the river from the garden though .

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