Just a Little Wintertime Reflection

Frozen Crystalline Water - Just a Little Wintertime Reflection
...magical, scientific, mysterious…

Long ago, or should I say, “In the beginning...” on the second and third days, a holy magical scientific phenomena in the form of frozen crystalline water began.

Sky, God created on the second day. Dust, God created on the third day. These particles of dust and frozen crystalline water though created in the beginning did not meet and combine, per se, until many years later. Precipitation came to us first when the earth was baptized. You know, when the whole earth was flooded. Before the first rain, springs from deep within the earth provided needed water for all of creation.

Back to the dust and crystals… they come together and form hundreds of feet above us so we may be blessed with life sustaining precipitation. That precipitation begins as one of the most magical happenings ever… snow! 

Yes, SNOW! 

Like magic a tiny spec of dust and a tiny spec of frozen crystalline water come together and form snow. Before it rains, before it sleets, before it hails and yes even when we have the pleasure of seeing and enjoying the snow, it all starts as dust and crystal. Oxford University Press has a great Infographic, “How is snow formed?”

Tracing scientific beginnings back to “In the beginning…” quite amazing, isn’t it? 
Winter in the southern Ohio River Valley is mild these years of late, generally consisting of infrequent dustings of snow, occasional ice storms but mostly rain. We actually received an accumulation of snow on a few occasions during this winter, much to the chagrin of many members of my family and friends. 

But, not me, I was delighted! Yes! To me, snow is like a magic fantasy come to life: glistening and swirling, falling gracefully from above in beautifully shaped flakes too innumerable to count and no two identical.  Snow reveals the otherwise unknown: who or what has been walking, hopping or scurrying around and through the fields and yards leaving their prints and tracks. Utterly wonderful!

And, for those of you who do not really feel the wonder of winter and snow, hang on! 

Spring is just around the corner! Just look for the crocus, daffodils and tulips. Those wonderful bulbs are usually the first ones to pop their heads through the semi-frozen earth, finding those first rays of sunlight towards the end of winter.

ta ta for now
Vi Gene

Links and Photo credits:
 "In the beginning..."
 first rain Pixabay photo by Jeff Jacobs
“How is snow formed?” Oxford University Press Infographic
glistening Pixabay photo by Michal Jarmoluk
beautifully shaped flakes Pixabay photo by Benjamin Balazs
hopping Pixabay photo by Suomi
tracks Pixabay photo by Hans Braxmeier