I know it's a bit childish to love the snow as much as I do. After all, heavy snowfalls often make the power go out. Ordinary people have to drive to work, risking life and limb on icy roadways in the process. And everything outdoors takes three times as much energy when there's snow on the ground.


But walking through a snowy landscape makes me feel like I've invaded an artist's pen-and-ink canvas. Tree trunks rise out of nothingness, lonely blades of grass look like quick strokes of a pen, and even the ordinary appears extraordinary when viewed against the blank slate of a good coat of snow.

Surprising layers of light and dark appear, like this wave pattern beneath our footbridge.


And the truly important parts of our landscape --- the living beings who usually blend in with brown winter leaves --- stand out exactly the way they ought.

So I'm afraid you're due for a few more pretty-snow-picture posts in the days ahead. This series is from Friday morning, after Wednesday's two inches had mostly melted and been replaced by another 4.6 inches Thursday night. I hope you're enjoying the beauty of your snow (if you have any) as well!

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About us: Anna Hess and Mark Hamilton spent over a decade living self-sufficiently in the mountains of Virginia before moving north to start over from scratch in the foothills of Ohio. They've experimented with permaculture, no-till gardening, trailersteading, home-based microbusinesses and much more, writing about their adventures in both blogs and books.



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