12.21.2020
TuckerWoods Farm – Winter Solstice
Dear Nature,
Today is the Winter Solstice, when we celebrate the return of the sun, little by little. Tonight we also witness a rare celestial event- a great conjunction of our solar system’s two largest planets, Jupiter and Saturn, as they are lined up with Earth in all their respective orbits around the sun. The last time this phenomenon was seen on Earth was almost 800 years ago.
Together they will create one bright Solstice star to usher in the dawning of the Age of Aquarius; the age of enlightenment, innovation and collective consciousness. May we have reached it in time to protect our home, Planet Earth.
With Love, Kelly
12.22.2020
Black-capped Chickadee and Red Pine
Dear Nature,
The sun will rise today just like yesterday, but today we gain one minute of daylight! My favorite bird is the fearless chickadee. The chickadee represents a cheerful nature, courage, positivity and flexibility. Values to remember as we reflect back on 2020 and look forward to 2021. I will be listening for the pure song of the chickadee
“Hey, sweetie!”
“I heard a bird sing in the dark of December. A magical thing. And sweet to remember. We are nearer to spring than we were in September. I hear a bird sing in the dark of December.”
– Oliver Herford
With Love, Kelly
12.23.2020
Winterberry
Dear Nature,
Winterberries are a favorite food of our winter bluebirds. I went to find a winterberry branch to paint, remembering several branches bursting with bright red berries on one of my favorite walks. Instead of seeing stop-sign red accents in the the muted colors of the early winter woods, I saw flashes of a hurt-your-eyes spring blue with hints of a rusty reds. Bluebirds! A flock of chittering bluebirds were feasting on the last remaining berries on the rapidly baring branches. I didn’t begrudge them their cheery food, they needed it more than I. Cutting a few branches, I continued on with my walk.
With Love, Kelly
12.24.2020
Sunrise at TuckerWood Farm
Dear Nature,
I am usually awake in the morning to see whatever sunrise you see fit to grace us with. I am a creature of the sun, I tend to wake up when the sky lightens and the birds begin to sing. Winter sunrises at our farm are my favorites. Your fiery sunrises look beautiful against a background of mourning dove grays and browns. They are even more spectacular the morning after a fresh, clean snowfall.
Sunrises & sunsets are a twice daily gift you give us and I am grateful for them all, however subtle or extravagant.
With Love, Kelly
12.25.2020
Princess Pine
Dear Nature,
Christmas Day is full of memories of Christmases past, delight of Christmas present and hope for Christmases in the future. Princess pine brings memories of my mother and Christmases past. Every year she would create a miniature princess pine tree; weaving the stems into a conical shaped basket form and decorating it with tiny multi-colored glass ornaments. And every year it sat in a place of honor on the antique table in our entryway.
I can still hear her voice asking me “Kelly, could you go pick the princess pine for the little tree,” as she handed me a brown paper bag. And in my mind’s eye I see my younger self, brown bag in hand, walking through the woods to our special princess pine patch.
With love, Kelly
12.26.202
Snow Bird in my Garden
Dear Nature,
Another thing my mother loved was her birds. On a late fall day she would announce ‘the snowbirds are back!’ Their return was one of inevitability; time was turning and the seasons marched on. Winter was just around the corner now that the snowbirds returned. Before long, the ground would be covered in snow.
It wasn’t until many years later I learned that they are really called Dark-eyed Juncos, not snow birds. And our regional species are slate-colored juncos. I took for granted that they just ‘returned’, but now know they spend summers up north to breed and spread southward for the winter months.
When I was a little girl, I knew that snow was to follow the return of our snowbirds.
With love, Kelly
12.27.2020
Raymond Brook, Hebron CT
Dear Nature,
There is something very special about winter walks. Your landscapes are more muted, and your treasures are more subtle. I have to be more present to find them. Like how bare branches reflect in a slow moving stream. It seems a fairly dull scene until I look closer. You paint a picture with such beautiful colors and patterns. Look even closer at the reflections; hints of deep cobalt-blue sky, red branch tips that whisper a hint of spring, sunny golds, lichen greens and deep umber shadows. I marvel at your gifts and can only hope to do them justice if I choose to paint them.
With love, Kelly