frost

When I went out to cut some kale this morning, the world was white with frost. A glaze of it on the steps down to the patio, every leaf of kale crisp with it. But the kale is made sweeter by the frost, one of those paradoxes which I’m sure has a scientific basis but which provides delight in spite of the science.

A good day to sew spirals into the salmon quilt — I sit in a big wicker rocking chair by the woodstove for this activity! And to notice how a nuthatch has joined the small cloud of chickadees feeding from the block of suet and the tower of sunflower seeds. Just one nuthatch, its elegant eyeliner making it a queen among the other birds.

And look at this bowl! I found it in a second-hand store just in time for John’s birthday. I filled it with a fresh Juliette goat cheese from the Salt Spring Island Cheese Company and now that it’s empty, I can see the beautiful patterns at its heart.

The coming year feels a bit like this — an elegant bowl to be filled with something fine, though maybe not as ephemeral as a fresh goat cheese.