Although I cannot tolerate frigid temperatures as I could in younger days, I am energized by a snowy day. I’m not sure why but even a light dusting of powdery snow like we had this week will lift my spirits. With the investment of warm down jackets and insulated boots to keep me toasty, I’m drawn outdoors for quiet walks in fresh fallen snow. And walks must be sooner rather than later for in our temperate Tidewater climate, it can snow today and 24 hours later it can be gone.

The snowy adventure that awaits seems to revive me from a semi dormant state of indoor life. How uplifting it is to witness Mother Nature’s artistic frosting of a lackluster and gloomy fall landscape. It is now transformed into a sugary winter wonderland. Even the most ordinary seed pod is now a goblet holding frozen crystals, or a rosebud is looking good enough to eat with a dollop of whipped snow atop. Small details you might otherwise miss in form and texture for a brief period, is boosted by the miracle of a little snow.

Daylily seed pod

Knockout rose

Kerria japonica

'Little Gem' magnolia

cattail at the pond

umbrella pine (Sciadopitys verticillata)

Ann Hohenberger, The Garden Club of Gloucester