Winter Days

 February 2011 has hit with two major winter blizzards that have debilitated not only this town, but the entire state of OK.  I am one who was encouraged by a forecast of white frosting, but am also aware of how this part of the country is just not as equipped to handle such forces of nature.

Here at Ox Creek the dogs are spending days and nights inside by the fire place to keep from the frigid air as the wind chill lowers the temps to -15. The cats huddle together in the barn, cuddled up tight in the small spaces that only cats can find. Usually purring away deep in the crevices of hay bales and coming to life only when the trickles of food into their bowl are echoed in the barn.

The cattle lay close together under the shelter of the barn, keeping their babies warm between them. The continuous fog rising from their noses, as their warm breath hits the cold air, reminds me of the fog that hovers over an ocean bay early on a summer morning.  My old gelding, Little Red, enjoys the warmth of his winter coat, as he sleeps among the cattle, hovering over them like a mother hen, steam rising from his mane, as what snow that accumulated overnight starts to melt away with the sunshine.  The chickens remain cozy and warm inside their coop, resting the days away, and the rabbits stay cuddled away in their nesting boxes full of hay.

The cold weather brings a warmth with it that is indescribable.  For a few white days, Maine is not so far away and my family is only down the road, a snowmobile ride away  - If only I had one here.  So, as any true Mainer does in the winter, I took this rare sticky snow opportunity to make a snowman. And oh what fun I had!