January 20, 2025

There are no worthwhile words to describe this particular January 20th. Better to look outside at the beautiful snow that fell overnight. The harsh winter landscape of frozen mud and ice has been repurposed and now is cloaked in a lovely coverlet of white. The sunshine is warm and the rays dazzling as they slant through the branches of pine, burnishing them with so many silvery flakes. A red cardinal alights on the white mound that is a forsythia bush. A bright spot of color on a winter’s day. It has stopped by to lend a touch of hope, perhaps.

There’s a peach pie steaming in the oven, and its fragrance permeates the air. The peaches come in wild abundance during those last weeks of September when they hang heavy off the branches. If I can get to them before the deer, I pluck them and preserve them for a winter’s treat. I didn’t plant any of the five trees that dot the back yard here in Freetown. That was God’s plan. Well, that and the compost where some stray pits must have landed so many years ago. In the fullness of a late summer’s day, it is easy to take the abundance for granted. We know the fruitful times will pass, and that we must prepare for the harshness of winter to come. Reluctantly, we say goodbye to the days of warmth and the ease of life. But we knew then, as we know now, that all things must pass.

Winter is here my friends, and I’m afraid it will be around for a while. Still, it is comforting to know that spring always follows even the harshest of winters. Before too long, it will be time to roll up our sleeves and get to work making the world a better place again. We can plant seeds of kindness in the most unlikely of places. We can grow in strength and against the odds, like those peach trees. We will call on a wisdom that comes with the ages. We will struggle to seek an understanding that seems beyond our grasp. And like the garden, we will patiently wait for the beauty to grow again, but it is going to take a lot of love.