Winter views

On Sunday afternoon, ice crystals pelletted the windows and after twilight, the outside world was coated with a thin layer of snow, the first of the winter.  In the morning, snow almost covered the leafy mulch in Papas garden.  The hellebores in full bloom shrugged under the weight, but they promised to stand up straight later in the day.

On television, the newscasters spoke about a winter storm, but viewers knew it as a non-event.  Nonetheless, it did not take long for thoughts to turn to spring, and to memories of a trip to Florida a few weeks before.


On Marco Island, on the Gulf side near the tip of Florida, the sky was clear blue and the sun was already hot by noon. The beach was a wide white sandy swath. In the ocean, pelicans dove for fish, and the occasional sailboat lazed by on the horizon.

The view from the balcony of the hotel made me smile.  Below the window, the tropical garden was full of color, even though it was winter.

Yet every sunny morning, my thoughts turned to my own living room, where I stand daily by the window, hands wrapped around a cup of hot tea, watching my own garden in the morning light.