“Winter is the time for comfort, for good food and warmth, for the touch of a friendly hand and for a talk beside the fire: it is the time for home.”
― Edith Sitwell

There are many of my friends that have been covered in snow and cold today. And while a little of my heart wishes I could have a snow day, my body is thankful I don’t need to shovel my walk.

Suppose we did our work
like the snow, quietly, quietly.
leaving nothing out.
—Wendell Berry

My Japanese Mapel has begun to bloom. For right now, it the topmost branches, but I can already see how full it is going to be. For my friends wrapped in freezing temperatures, here are a few blooms to warm your heart.

“I pray this winter be gentle and kind–a season of rest from the wheel of the mind. ”
–John Geddes