Beautiful Branches

It’s exceedingly crisp and cold out, but the sky is a bright clear blue, so I had to go out with my camera.

The way that nature responds to such harsh conditions is amazing to me, as I sit bundled in my home with my wood stove cranking out the heat. Today I decided to focus on the trees.

The deciduous trees manage to sway in the breeze, storing their life-giving sap and protecting their buds through the harshest of temperatures. Their strong silhouettes are beautiful, whether against the clear blue sky or outlined in white from a fresh snowfall.

The evergreens put on their own show. This winter I’ve been particularly struck by the difference in how the Blue Spruce and the Norway Spruce handle snowfall. In this row are two Norways framed by two Blues. The Blues make shelves of their boughs, with the snow building up on them without causing any problems. In contrast, the Norways shed the snow as quickly as possible. In the decades to come the Norways will drape their branches like the most graceful of gowns, while the Blues will hold theirs out with untiring strength.

All trees make the best use of their particular assets to survive the cold of winter, the heat of summer, and the winds of spring and fall. As I age, I try to gain the wisdom to identify and make use of my own strengths.