It's all about focus

I enjoy the transition to winter each year, the chance to scale down my daily life. Inward vs. outward. Inside vs. outside. Small steps, not long walks. Roomscapes instead of landscapes.

My summertime pursuits always seem to be large-scale. Weeding flowerbeds. Planting patio containers. Mowing an acre of grass. Pruning fruit trees. Waging war on the blackberries. In winter I can enjoy the weather outside, but focus on things like cooking, quilting, reading, writing. Build a fire, and the whole house feels cozier. Put on a pot of stew, and the whole house smells yummy. Small things, big results.

One thing in my life that makes the transition from season to season is photography. Whatever the season or weather, my lens is turned to the world outside the four walls of my little farmhouse. Just at home, there's plenty to focus on. The towering wall of cedar trees behind the tiny well house, which protects the original hand-dug well for the farm. The birds that enjoy free food, year round. The flower gardens, the orchard in full bloom. In years past, horses galloping in the pasture. Broad views across our narrow valley, beautiful with its green pastures and trees that change with the seasons, never boring.

My camera is always close by, and when I leave the house, it's always with me. You just never know what you might find. I spent part of the Christmas break sorting through my photo archive, and realized how many pictures were just happenstance, being in the right place at the right time. Like the kids playing in the town fountain plaza on a 100 degree day. Or the Merlin that's currently in my blog header, sitting in a branch just a few feet away. The herons flying across the road in front of me, each carrying a branch for nest building. The local truck farm full of tractors and pickers, with Mt. Rainier in the background.

Each day is a new chance to see something remarkable, and I can hardly wait to see what I'll find.