Low Temps and High Spirits

I'd intended to write about the bitter cold we've had lately. I was going to tell how hard it was on men, beasts, hydraulics, and diesel engines. But it sounded like I was simultaneously complaining and boasting about how hard winter is around here, so I scrapped it.

There's really so much to be grateful for: plenty of hay, straw, and oats for the livestock; a full freezer and propane tank; electricity, running water, and 4-wheel drive; steaming tea and Hubby's homemade bread; snow for cross-country skiing; wool socks and new mittens; satellite television to watch the playoffs--go Seahawks!

I'm especially thankful for the snow that cushions and supports Sugar's hooves. I love to see her run, buck, play, and paw through snow (to graze) without last summer's pain. Sugar feels so jaunty that when I lead her back to the barn, she finds any excuse to spook and prance about like some high-strung filly. In the past, I might have found that annoying, but now I just grin.

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"And why had I moved of my own free will
To a place that prided itself
On the blunt misery of January?"
           ~Baron Wormser, from "January",Good Poems