When the Little Things Are Actually The Big Things
The case for sledding at dusk and surrounding yourself in the sights and sounds of pure delight
Last month just as winter break came to an end we had a snowstorm come through that kept the kids out of school for another week. A week of hot chocolate with whip cream after stripping off snow covered boots and icy socks, gloves and hats. Piles of snow pants and coats and additional layers lived next to the garage door for a solid two weeks. The snow itself managed to linger around for a full four weeks before finally revealing the muddy mess beneath.
Part of our snowfall feeling everlasting however was own doing. We have a very flat yard, so we used shovels pushing and piling the snow to make our own hills at first. Just big enough to give my four and six year old kids a rush of excitement going down and enough momentum to get them over a snowy jump and to the curb before stalling out.
Eventually the roads were clear enough to hit the park and sled there at a hill large enough that standing at the top made me feel nervous to go down the first time and ultimately shriek in laughter and excitement sharing the sled with my kids.
We chose to go in the evenings.
Right at dusk.
Standing at the peak of that giant hill with a view of Christmas lights still shining amongst the snow as the sky shifted into that glorious dusky pinky purple. There’s very few things that compare to sledding at dusk. Filling your lungs up with frigid air, exhaling tiny puffs of clouds back out, absorbing all the excited squeals and laughter from strangers and people you love.
I wholeheartedly love summer but a snowy winter is it’s own kind of special magic, something to be absorbed through all of your senses...
Should you find yourself with a chance to go sledding, go, even if it’s just to take in the joy bursting forth in your community. You don’t have to want to jump on a sled and go careening down a snowy, icy hill to be enveloped in the wonder of it. Take your dog for a walk near the local sled hill and feel the cold air fill your lungs, let your heart be filled back up from the wonderous sounds of laughter and squealing and sheer, unincumbered joy from people in your community living in the moment. Take in the way the light alters the landscape as the sun sets and be witness to the first stars and planets to reappear along the way.
Then go make yourself a hot chocolate….
yeah, yeah, I’m sure you could come up with a whole host of reasons not to bother, or you could just get bundled up and go anyway.
Just before break came to an end I started researching native flowers we may want to add to the garden this year. My son even climbed up in my lap and helped me scour hundreds of plants native to where we live, excitedly pointing out everything that caught his eye.
We ultimately narrowed it down to forty five.
Soooooo, definitely far from being narrowed down enough hahaha, our yard just isn’t that big but it’s exciting to consider the possibilities. I ended up taking some time to dig in more and research and then (because sometimes I actually am organized) I made up a chart showing soil types, bloom times, colorways and little notations for anything special (like if they were a host plant for anything).
Then I picked a few flowers to start trying to draw out and make detailed notes about in my sketchbook and as Spring slowly begins to creep our way I thought I would start sharing that here too.
With biodiversity in such rapid decline, even planting a few natives in pots on your porch or balcony can make a small impact and collectively a much bigger one.
Don’t underestimate the power of planting native, even if you don’t have a lot of space to do it in.
So with that said over the next few months you can expect to see drawings of flowers native to the Eastern US and Great Plains area with details about bloom time, the natural landscape you might find them in, soil, moisture and sun conditions that allow each plant to thrive and maybe other plants you might consider planting alongside it. As well as how tall it can grow under the right conditions and the ways in which it supports life around where you live.
The first one I’m planning to highlight is this little beauty here, Prairie Wild Rose (Rosa Arkansana).
more to come,
xoxo,
Bec