A Snow Which Belongs

Yes, we had an 'early' snow in October. Yes, the month of November was one of the tenth warmest on record. Yes, we need moisture.

So, the snow which began last evening and is still lightly coming down, is not only welcome, it feels timely. The Solstice nears - the beginning of Winter.

                                     Snow-flakes

               By Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

Out of the bosom of the Air,

     Out of the cloud-folds of her garments shaken,

Over the woodlands brown and bare,

     Over the harvest-fields forsaken,

          Silent, and soft, and slow,

          Descends the snow.

Even as our cloudy fancies take

     Suddenly shape in some divine expresssion,

Even as the troubled heart doth make

     In the white countenance confession,

          The troubled sky reveals

          The grief it feels.

This is the poem of the air,

     Slowly in silent syllables recorded;

This is the secret of despair,

     Long in its cloudy bosom hoarded,

          Now whispered and revealed

          To wood and field.