Wednesday 1 February 2012

Imbolc

Vita, Bertie and I crunch our way through the thick tussocks of frosted grass that border the field down to the stream. The frozen water droplets trapped in the whirls of the young thistles gleam in the torchlight.

The internet is full of photos of snow elsewhere in France and Europe and there are dire warnings of the bitter winter weather driving down from Siberia over the next few days.

And yet in the dark, we hear the promise of the tipping of the seasons - high above us, the cries of cranes heading east and north.

According to the pagan calendar the first of February is Imbolc.  The first day of spring.

6 comments:

  1. Brrr! That meteogram doesn't make happy reading, Sue. Hope the cranes can cope with the cold.

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  2. Fortunately where we are, we're only going down to -8C though they say the wind chill means it will probably feel like -15C. I think some of the cranes have turned back south again!

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  3. I really do not miss temperatures like that.
    I remember our last winter...-18 for over a week so that the cold even penetrated our metre thick stone walls...
    Getting the dogs to go out was a nightmare, while the poor chickens, ducks and geese just huddled together in their sheds under the cardboard boxes we'd given them in an attempt to give them some insulation. Even their deep straw was freezing.

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  4. Oh Fly, that sounds grim! We're spoilt in the cottage - double glazing, underfloor heating. The house, though, is draughty and impossible to keep warm. So we're lucky to have our "winter quarters"! The dogs love the cold, but it's nothing like as cold as your experience. :)

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  5. Underfloor heating sounds like a good idea. A hot water bottle under each foot also works!

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  6. Hi Rob, a duvet over the shoulders and tied with string round the waist also helps! :)

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