Day 31: Windy Blue

Day 30: Mellow Mist

It's amazing how far north the sunrise has moved since I took the Jan. 9th photo!

Day 29: Silhouette

Day 28: Teo's Choice

(Best viewed large - click for full screen.)

I couldn't decide which shot to use. What a glorious morning, and lovely day! Almost felt like spring, until the sun went down, shining beautifully pink on the mountains, and the heat quickly radiated out to space! Brrrr!

Day 27: Dramatic Blues

Day 26: Sun Kissed Snow

Day 25: The Cat and I

Day 24: Hang On!

Finally
ten days
of gray
and ice
and fog
and clouds
so dark and dreary
cold and weary
interrupted by a change

flakes so soft
and white
and clean
fall softly
blanketing the land
my eyes take in a feast of beauty
every hue jumps out
in contrast
to the pure white snow
fulfilling longings in my soul
long dulled by icy gray

within the midst of orchard trees
birds chirp and fly
from branches pruned
to apples sweet
and then I spy
upon a wire
a clothespin
random
unexplained
it whispers silently
Hang On!
The darkest night
is just before the dawn!

Day 23: Gray Blue

Day 22: Blue

Day 21: Gray

Just to save the spot incase

Day 20: Delayed Dawn

I woke on this historic day filled with anticipation and hope. I couldn't pull myself from the unfolding moment displayed on the TV, so I snapped a shot of my four year old looking at Obama getting ready to head to the inauguration, with the dawning gray morning silhouetting a branch of the rose bush growing outside my living room window.

The morning drive, to all three schools, surprised me with its interesting sky. Swaths of clouds in a beautiful light royal blue, somehow both soft and bold, contrasted with the normal gray creating drama that seemed to echo the beating of my heart.

From there the tone changed. I was reminded both of my shortcomings, and also of the non-celebratory mood that hangs over my town. I also ran into the massive amount of us who did want to watch and celebrate as our first African-American President was sworn into office. When I signed on to CNN Live I was greeted with a message saying:

"You made it - so did everyone else! You are in line and will be connected to the live feed as soon as a slot opens up!"

It took what felt like an eternity, and sadly when it did load, it was choppy, frozen and hard to hear.

As icing on the cake, I lost the picture I took of the dawn.

So now, I finally sit down to finally enjoy the celebration. Thank goodness for Dish DVR! In lieu of the lost morning shot, I'll share a bit of Air and Simple Gifts, played at the inauguration. I wish I still had the larger memory card, so I could record it all, but this still captures the moment:



A quieter joy fills my heart as the dawn of true equality, of ALL men (and women) truly standing equal in our land, finally breaks free over our country. We have yet to see what this new day holds. There is a lot to be done, but I do hope that step by step, we can overcome.

Day 19: Silver Tracks

Day 18: A Light Dusting

A very fine and dainty dust
of powdered sugar snow
was sprinkled lightly on the drive
while I slept soundly through the night

A chunk of white and crusty ice
cracks and crunches where puddles once
reflected sky and cloud
in universes underground

The gray unending sky remains
like covers pulled over our heads
to shield us from the blazing sun
that wants to wake our sleepy eyes

Oh, blessed wind please blow this way
and pull away the blanket gray
for though the sun may blind and stars may chill
they'll pull the cobwebs from my mind
and sweet fresh air will fill my soul.

Day 17: Orchard under Inversion

My husband went up to La Grande a couple nights ago and said it was 33 degrees with a beautiful starry sky. I imagine the sunrises there must be amazing! We remain socked in under this inversion. Everything is still frozen and we haven't seen the sun in a while.

If you look really closely, you can see the blurry evidence of a flock of starlings that invades the orchard everyday. They love to eat the leftover apples, and I love to watch them fly in formation! I wanted a picture of that, but ran out of battery.

Day 16: Icy Leaves

Day 15: More Freezing Fog

Day 14: Frozen Droplets

Day 13: Cielo Rayado

Day 12: Early Blue

Day 11: Sunrise Moonset

Day10: Calm

Day 9: Sunshine!

Finally! ^_^

Day 8: Blustery

Day 7: Misty Blues

Day 6: Going Green

It doesn't look like it but there is a thick layer of rain clouds blocking the sun. They wind kept blowing and by sunset the sky was glorious! Why can't the sunrises have a bit of glory?

Day 5: Wind and Rain

Day 4: Freezing Fog

a freezing fog crept in last night
glazing everything with white
it spreads and bounces 'round the light
to make this soft and pretty sight

Day 3: Jan. 3rd, 2009

Day 2: Jan. 2nd, 2009

I was expecting more rainclouds this morning, but instead I was greeted by a soft whispering blanket of pure white snow! How lovely! Why had I wimped out and not taken a picture of the rain yesterday? It would have made such a nice contrast. Oh, well... the Bible verse about the snow popped into my mind:

Cleanse me with hyssop, and I will be clean;
wash me, and I will be whiter than snow.
- Psalm 51:7

I looked it up online, and was pleasantly surprised to see that it was followed one of my favorite passages:

Create in me a pure heart, O God,
and renew a steadfast spirit within me.

Do not cast me from your presence
or take your Holy Spirit from me.

Restore to me the joy of your salvation
and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me.

-Psalm 51: 10-12

It's the first in a little trio of verses I've considered "mine" since I was a teenager.
I used the version switcher and looked it up in The Message and liked the way this passage read:

Scrub away my guilt,
soak out my sins in your laundry.
I know how bad I've been;
my sins are staring me down.

I guess that sums up my resolutions - I'm hoping to wash out some stains, I know I can't get rid of all of them now, but little by little I hope to make my life a little brighter!

Day 1: Jan. 1st, 2009

Last night, after saying goodnight to our good family friends, I checked the sunrise calendar, and went to bed. It was about 2:30am. I set the alarm for a bit before the 7:35am sunrise with big plans to start my year out right, but when it went off I hit the snooze!

I got up when it rang again and peeked out at the gray rainy morning. I couldn't find the camera last night, and it felt too cold to look for it now. I crawled back in bed and slept till after 10.

At this, I woke up and looked around. My sleep had been very sweet.
Jeremiah 31:26

^_^

New Year's Resolution

I wanted to make a resolution this year that I would actually keep, that would actually make a difference in my life, and that would be fun! I am NOT a morning person. I would much prefer to stay up past midnight and sleep in the next morning, but that makes my days rushed and stresses me out! So, I came up with the resolution to be up and photograph every sunrise this year! If I miss a day, I will pick up where I left off so that perfection does not become a stumbling block. When I have time I will try to add an inspirational word each day, but I don't want to spend too much time on this.

I wish you success with your year's plans! Happy 2009!