#NewThisDay Writing From My Photo Stream

        Let night come
with its austere grandeur,
ancient superstitions and fears.
It can do us no harm.
We’ll put some music on,
open the curtains, let things darken
as they will.

~ Excerpt from “Here and Now,” Stephen Dunn

The dogs are not happy when I slip out the door at 4:25 a.m. and they haven’t had a walk. They must wait. The snow has not yet started. I must drive my mother-in-law to an early medical procedure in Boston. Soon the snow starts, a rainy snow that slows the day. In the late afternoon, nearing dusk, as I pull into the driveway, a barred owl lifts off, flashing its barred brown and white feathers, and swoops across the driveway in front of my car. It feels like a lovely welcome home. In minutes, I am outdoors with the dogs, shoveling before walking. A fine jeweled film of ice covers all. Brittle, beautiful, branches. It is only me, and Charlie, getting soaked in the storm and making our way home before dark.