Beauty in the Brown

Winter has never been my favorite season of the year. I love to be outdoors, but not when the air temperature is cold enough to kill me. And not when the frigid northwest wind blows the flags straight out from their poles, and threatens to blow me off my feet. But the temperature isn't the worst of it; I really hate the depressing brown landscape that dominates our winters in the Nebraska panhandle.

For me, a skiff of snow is a blessing that covers up the brown and adds some contrast to an otherwise dull vista. Frosty trees are magical. Blazing sunsets, though short lived, revive my sagging spirits.

In the dead of winter, I have to look hard to find beauty in the brown.

Frosty pine trees line the highway south of town.

Footprints on the uncleared path lead to the Monument.

He spreads the snow like wool and scatters the frost like ashes.

Psalm 147:16

A dusting of snow covers the ground just to the east of Chimney Rock, as the setting sun illuminates the sky.

Freezing rain can be treacherous, but it turns brown twigs into magnificent sculptures.

This gorgeous sunset outshines the dreary brown bluffs.

The heavens proclaim the glory of God. The skies display his craftsmanship.

Psalm 19:1

The setting sun illuminates the prairie.

Sunshine and blue sky always make winter days better, especially when the Monument is part of the landscape.

The setting sun highlights the variety of vegetation on the national park land. 

I love it when an orange and purple sunset backlights the bare trees in my neighborhood.

My camera caught the rays of the sun over the Monument the day after the snow fell.

He says to the snow, "Fall on the earth."

Job 37:6a

I like the way the trees mask the Monument, and the way the blue sky is reflected in the lake.

Blue is one of my favorite colors, so a blue sky and lake always brighten my day, even when the lake is partly covered with ice.

The stormy wind comes from its chamber, and the driving winds bring the cold. God's breath sends the ice, freezing wide expanses of water.

Job 37:9-10

The texture of the trees and grass contrasts with the smooth ice, while four geese float peacefully in the still water. 

When I brave the chilly winter winds on top of Scotts Bluff, I am rewarded with the view of Dome Rock and the badlands that separate the land formations.

This shaded path seems to lead straight to Dome Rock.

Millions of Canada Geese call the North Platte River home, but only in the wintertime.

The trees reach for the sky in Northfield Park, after a little snowfall.

This snowy path tells a story of the people and animals who passed that way before me.
My long shadow reveals the time of day.

The late afternoon sun adds a spark of color to the brown and white landscape.

As long as the earth remains, there will be planting and harvest, cold and heat, summer and winter, day and night.

Genesis 8:22

Telltale footprints in the snow reveal a rabbit's identity.

The LORD is good to those whose hope is in him, to the one who seeks him.

Lamentations 3:25