Frozen Beauty

I can't quite believe that again, we have arrived at the end of a year. A week ago, in the wild and stormy night, we lost a tree. It was an old elder that had died, but was host to a huge tangle of ivy. There had been nests over the years within it's sprawling greenery. A blackbird raised it's young, a pigeon sadly lost it's mate to a bird of prey and sparrows liked to meet up and chatter there. Now there is a space and the light is shining in. The old has gone and a new opportunity for something else to grow has occurred.  A little like a new year.

Yesterday morning, all began frozen.
 I restocked the bird table, then went for a wander.

The old year shone bright and filled with sparkle.

As the sun burned through to melt the ice, a glimpse of Spring was snatched. A blue clear sky glowed new and fresh with promise.

Now as I sit here finishing this post, the frosted day of yesterday is just a memory. It's just before dawn and outside the wind has returned. It growls in the chimney and rattles the tree bones again. The wind chimes are no longer hanging gently from a holly branch, they are high on a ships mast,  being battered on a stormy sea. Is it the old year furiously trying to hang on, or the new one telling the old it's time is up? The stirring up and clearing out of the dead wood to let the new emerge. Later today there will be kindling galore to collect.
I hope that you all had a wonderful festive time this last week. Thank you all for your comments of merry wishes. :)
May the new year bring peace and light to all.
X

'Do your little bit of good where you are; it's those little bits of good put together that overwhelm the world'
                                                                                                           - Archbishop Desmond Tutu