The holidays and laughter and fun have passed, family has all gone home and all that lies ahead for [seemingly] ever is cold and gloom...
Living with a wee dog and no backyard requires one to walk several times a day. And it doesn't matter what the weather. My wee one loves to be outside.
In any weather.
But even she has her limits on days when the temps dip below Zero.
That's when I see a lot of this.
On days like that I bundle us both up in our winter warmest and open the door to head outside she takes one look, promptly turns and makes a mad dash back inside. But, alas, she being a dog, she does eventually need to go outside - no matter the weather.
So we dodge ice and snow and dreary mornings.
And feel really sorry for ourselves.
But despite the snow and ice and cold, if we only take time to notice, nature shows us how amazing she is.
Ice crystals on the edge of the lake.
There are days when January redeems itself ~ if I just pay attention. Days when the Colorado sky is so blindingly blue it hurts my eyes.
And mornings when it is so, so quiet I can hear the rhythmic whoosh, whoosh, whoosh of the Canada geese as they glide gently above my head.
And of
course there is the lighter side of our January mornings ~ those mornings when,
while still a chill in the air, the sun in shining and the promise of a warmer
day gives us a lift. Kizzie and I meet our fellow dog people and pups as we
round corners. We chat with our Southern friend who has dubbed Kizzie not only
as "Miss Kizzie" but has now added a middle name for her. "Good
Morning, Miss Kizzie Mae. How are you today?" he asks in his welcoming Southern
drawl.
I don't know many people names, but Kizzie Mae and I know Daisy and Dolly and Chester and Murray and Max and Ricky and Barkley and Monroe and Annie (well, two Annies) and a few others we wave to (hands and tails respectively).
So in looking at the big picture of January ~ for the gloomy days there actually are a fair amount of beautiful days.
And then comes February...
