A New Year, Day, Week and Colors of Winter . . . .

Every day beings novelty. And with Monday, January, here begins the launch of a new website and new ventures.

I have taken pictures since I was a little child. Fascinated with lore about the natural world, captivated by seasons and enabled by a photographer father who impressed upon me the need to always have a picture taking device 'on me' at all times, it is inevitable that I often 'see'' my environs through an external lens.

The arrival of this new year, with temperatures at home in the Berkshires barely topping out in the positive numbers, has offered a chance to play with the frost that blossoms on my windows. Crystalline patterns branching in all directions makes for a natural pairing with the limbs of a 250+ year old maple in the background: stark and bold against a pale blue winter sky.

While many find winter bleak and pale, I find it alive with things that sparkle with color, as diamonds do in bright light. Of course, this assumes a bright day like this one; there is plenty of drear in the dark, sleety days that try the patience of even winter lovers such as I. Still, today there is sun and sparkle: a good start to a New Year. Cheers!