The Magic in Dark Decembers...

"The woods are lovely dark and deep"

The days are shorter, for sure. A few weeks away from the Winter Solstice, we are reminded daily now that we have entered the dark pages of the calendar. But this weekend, I was reminded how all of us will seek a way to find the light in winter by a simple post on Facebook. I was looking to change my "cover" photo from a Thanksgiving theme to a Christmas theme when I stumbled upon a picture that captivated me...and 200 others.

Deep within the snowy woods stood a fully lit tree illuminating its surroundings. With snow covering the ground, there's no sign of where the lighting wires lead to, but its placement there speaks volumes. Each colored light reaches within our souls and rescues hope from the darkness that is often buried beneath our struggles.

Now, social media can be a great measurement of how people that you know, and people you have never met, are feeling. And in the four years that I have been posting photos, I have never had one that stirred so much emotion, or was "shared" on both Facebook and Twitter as much as this one little picture. One tweet that came back to me said "holidays depress me but that picture made me smile. #warmth". On Facebook, a friend who had taken a sleigh ride in Vermont with her husband and actually came upon a decorated tree in the woods, shared the photo and posted "It was the most magical experience!" I can only imagine!

But one tweet I received absolutely hit close to home. "I can't help but wonder, what would Robert Frost think if his horse stopped here?" Of course! "Stopping in the woods on a snowy evening" is by far my favorite poem. His words perfectly captured the elegance of a snowfall deep within the woods witnessed by someone most likely both tired and cold but humbled by the wonder of his surroundings. And he pays homage.

Whose woods these are I think I know.   

His house is in the village though;   

He will not see me stopping here   

To watch his woods fill up with snow.   

My little horse must think it queer   

To stop without a farmhouse near   

Between the woods and frozen lake   

The darkest evening of the year.   

He gives his harness bells a shake   

To ask if there is some mistake.   

The only other sound’s the sweep   

Of easy wind and downy flake.   

The woods are lovely, dark and deep.   

But I have promises to keep,   

And miles to go before I sleep,   

And miles to go before I sleep.

Robert Frost

   This poem is my quiet place. It's an image I call on when I'm stressed or overwhelmed. Although, this time it took a stranger on twitter to point out what drew me to this photo of a Christmas tree deep in the woods on a snowy evening. It's a reminder, that as we attempt to cram so much into the short days of December, we take a moment to sit back and quietly breath it all in. We all have "many miles to go" before we sleep. But please make a moment to find that "the woods are lovely, dark and deep."

Photo by ImageGoggle