Celebrate the light

Today is the winter solstice. In the Twin Cities, the sun officially rose at 7:48 am and set at 4:35 pm giving us only 8 hours and 47 minutes of daylight. I've recently met a family that holds a solstice party every year. It made me realize that this is a day I really should celebrate, for from now until June, we have a little more sunlight every day. I will be thankful for each additional minute.

Of course, today I did not get out in the sunlight very much. Well, there wasn't a lot anyway - it was cloudy most of the day. But I spent about 6 hours in malls, getting my shopping done. Yes, I put it off for a long time - I had only barely started before today. But still, I didn't really stress out about it. I just shopped methodically, and now I think it will be ok if I don't buy anything else. Though I still may...

When I did get home, I decided I should take the dog on a walk and get some pictures after the dusting of snow last night. Here's the best of the bunch:


This picture reminds me of how much fun the simplest things can be. I'm happy that I can run, that I have a great camera, that I live near the woods, that there is snow on the ground, that my family is safe and warm at home, and that I have a dog to show me how to live in the moment.