First Snow

We woke to snow. First snow may not really register with many here, especially after last year’s bitter Winter, but for us, soft, sun loving, warm climate returnees it is the first real snow we have seen for many years.

It’s strange stuff, it muffles and chokes and clogs things. It turns things into something else, transforms places into somewhere else. The white grass is quite shocking. The sky is darker than the land. Things don’t look quite right.

Starlings, crows and rooks look even an blacker black ... and I am reminded of Robert Frost’s curious poem. A favourite of mine.

DUST OF SNOW

The way a crow
Shook down on me
The dust of snow
From a hemlock tree
Has given my heart
A change of mood
And saved some part
Of a day I had rued.

Robert Frost

The other day I had taken down 3 small bird boxes that had been abandoned in every way .. left high and dry and disintegrating up on the side wall. I am going to give them some TLC and replace the perches. They are standing by the conservatory door waiting to be attended to and this morning their little roofs covered are with snow. I can see them from my work room, so made a sketch.

Then I thought this was a rather nice image, so painted it again and added a robin. I was watching the robins yesterday and had made a few sketches.

Hmm almost Christmassy!

It’s lunchtime now and all the snow has gone…