Monday, snow day. The kids and I are home today, poised between one winter storm and another. One child still in bed; one playing next door. A fire in the wood stove. Cozy. It'll be a slow day--chili on the stove, projects around the house, I'm thinking oatmeal bread is a good idea. Not much more to say--just that nesting thing going on, that midwinter connection to the hearth, gratitude for space to breathe.

I Love You, Gentlest of Ways

I love you, gentlest of Ways,
who ripened us as we wrestled with you.

You, the great homesickness we could never shake off,
you, the forest that always surrounded us,

you, the song we sang in every silence,
your dark net threading through us,

on the day you made us you created yourself,
and we grew sturdy in your sunlight....

Let your hand rest on the rim of Heaven now
and mutely bear the darkness we bring over you.

-- Rainer Maria Rilke