Happy Winter Solstice

Happy Solstice!  I don't actually pay much attention to New Years Eve.  Dec. 21st, the winter solstice, is much more fitting as the turning point of the year, for tomorrow the days start to get longer again!  It will be slow at first, but within a few days I can tell the difference, and it portends so much to look forward to!  

One year, back at our last house, I actually dragged myself out of bed early enough to catch the solstice sunrise, far to the southeast, the trees in our fencerow framing it nicely.

It was fun watching the pre-dawn sunrise, dreaming that there were a few druids in the trees nearby watching it with me!

And then finally, 15 minutes later, after all the colour had faded (the best colour is always pre-dawn), the sun broke the horizon.  From now until June 21st it would move higher in the sky and the days would be longer.  That's what I'm thinking of today!

P.S.  Barbara asked what the silhouette of a bird in my first photo of the last post was.  It's a decal of a small hawk, stuck on the glass, intended to scare the small birds away before they crash into the window.  I'm not sure if it works or not, but I'm willing to try.