"Over the ground lies a mantle of white..."

Oh joy!

Last night the first bold snowflakes flew with determination into my unsuspecting face as I exited 1st Christian Reformed Church. I was so impressed by the vigor of their appearance that I was struck with a sense of the mere joyfulness of the occasion.

This morning I peeked out my still dark window to discover that a mantle of white was indeed lying over the ground! It is beautiful, the quarter is almost over, and I am one very happy girl.

The very first snow of the season. Oh let it snow! And it isn't December quite yet either. ¡Es mui bonita!

"Sleigh bells ring! Are you listening--in the lane the snow is glistening, its a beautiful sight, we're happy tonight..."

this little girl

"Toy land, toy land,
Little girl and boy land,
Once you cross its borders
You may never return again."

Today is my birthday. Today I am eighteen...and somehow, I am sad. But also glad. Now at last I am no longer play-acting. Could it be? Am I really grown up? I think I have been playing at woman-hood all my life--but I never knew it. Sweet sixteen is now so far away, so very long ago. Some voice within me speaks--whispering urgently to me, it says, "Stop, cherish, remember!" It tells me that now is the time. It is time to reflect, time to record. I must not forget--I must remember this day, this age, this feeling. For it will never return. It cannot. For all children must grow up--that is the tragedy of it...

...and the beauty.