It's been pretty cold where I live. Like most of the country, I suppose. My childhood was spent in a cold part of the country but my entire adult life has been here, in the south. I love the south. I love the sun. I love the bright, blue skies. I love little stretches of time where you only need a light jacket in the middle of winter. I'm joyfully celebrating this break of warmer weather.
I don't live near snow anymore. We get snow maybe two or three times a winter season. But my sister lives where they could have snow seven months out of the year. I used to live in that during my childhood. And today I'm remembering that wonderful quiet after it snows. It's like the big, thick blanket of snow is an insulator. It filters out all of the noise and you can hear each individual sound. I loved to take walks after it snowed. My sister called today and told me about her run in the snow today and it made me miss snow. I still don't want to be surrounded by it 7 months out of the year but I still find joy in snow.
My grandmother loved cardinals. When she died I kept a needlepoint picture she had done with a cardinal on it. Because people know that I have adopted her love of cardinals I now received gifts that have cardinals on them. A few years ago, my husband bought me a beautiful bird feeder and set it up just outside our kitchen door. The door has a window so I can look out there while I'm cooking or cleaning up. We always have plenty of birdseed in it, especially the kind specifically designed to attract cardinals. That is, until a few months ago. We were so busy with guests and the holidays I kept forgetting to refill it. When I finally did the birds came back but not my sweet cardinal family. It has taken about three weeks but they came back! I am joyful that my cardinals are home again!
