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Winter
Excerpt:
Winter within us means vitality and purpose and throbbing life; and without us in our fields and woods it means widened prospect, the storm of battle, the holiness of peace, the poetry of silence and darkness and emptiness and death. And I have tried throughout this volume to show that Winter is only a symbol, that death is only an appearance, that life is everywhere, and that everywhere life dominates even while it lies buried under the winding-sheet of the snow.
“A simple child,
That lightly draws its breath,
What should it know of death?”
Why, this at least, that the winter world is not dead; that the cold is powerless to destroy; that life flees and hides and sleeps, only to waken again, forever stronger than death—fresher, fairer, sweeter for its long winter rest.
But first of all, and always, I have tried here to be a naturalist and nature-lover, pointing out the sounds and sights, the things to do, the places to visit, the how and why, that the children may know the wild life of winter, and through that knowledge come to love winter for its own sake.
And they will love it. Winter seems to have been made especially for children. They do not have rheumatism. Let the old people hurry off down South, but turn the children loose in the snow. The sight of a snowstorm affects a child as the smell of catnip affects a cat. He wants to roll over and over and over in it. And he should roll in it; the snow is his element as it is a polar bear cub’s.
I love the winter, and so do all children—its bare fields, empty woods, flattened meadows, its ranging landscapes, its stirless silences, its tumult of storms, its crystal nights with stars new cut in the glittering sky, its challenge, defiance, and mighty wrath. I love its wild life—its birds and animals; the shifts they make to conquer death. And then, out of this winter watching, I love the gentleness that comes, the sympathy, the understanding! One gets very close to the heart of Nature through such understanding.
Winter within us means vitality and purpose and throbbing life; and without us in our fields and woods it means widened prospect, the storm of battle, the holiness of peace, the poetry of silence and darkness and emptiness and death. And I have tried throughout this volume to show that Winter is only a symbol, that death is only an appearance, that life is everywhere, and that everywhere life dominates even while it lies buried under the winding-sheet of the snow.
“A simple child,
That lightly draws its breath,
What should it know of death?”
Why, this at least, that the winter world is not dead; that the cold is powerless to destroy; that life flees and hides and sleeps, only to waken again, forever stronger than death—fresher, fairer, sweeter for its long winter rest.
But first of all, and always, I have tried here to be a naturalist and nature-lover, pointing out the sounds and sights, the things to do, the places to visit, the how and why, that the children may know the wild life of winter, and through that knowledge come to love winter for its own sake.
And they will love it. Winter seems to have been made especially for children. They do not have rheumatism. Let the old people hurry off down South, but turn the children loose in the snow. The sight of a snowstorm affects a child as the smell of catnip affects a cat. He wants to roll over and over and over in it. And he should roll in it; the snow is his element as it is a polar bear cub’s.
I love the winter, and so do all children—its bare fields, empty woods, flattened meadows, its ranging landscapes, its stirless silences, its tumult of storms, its crystal nights with stars new cut in the glittering sky, its challenge, defiance, and mighty wrath. I love its wild life—its birds and animals; the shifts they make to conquer death. And then, out of this winter watching, I love the gentleness that comes, the sympathy, the understanding! One gets very close to the heart of Nature through such understanding.
Kindle Edition
First published January 1, 2013
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
February 11, 2020
I liked the beginning chapters of this book; the beautiful descriptive passages, the lists of things to do, see, and listen for in the winter.
The chapters were long, and while my kids listened politely, I knew they were finding it tedious. Even I grew tired, though we only read from it once or twice a week.
Chapter 9 was overwhelmingly evolutionary and we ended up skipping most of it.
The chapters were long, and while my kids listened politely, I knew they were finding it tedious. Even I grew tired, though we only read from it once or twice a week.
Chapter 9 was overwhelmingly evolutionary and we ended up skipping most of it.
January 15, 2023
What a lovely little book. I love the spaced out chapters of what to do, what to see, what to hear, etc. throughout the winter, intermingled with highlights of animals to keep a lookout for during the season. I would recommend it for anyone who struggles to see the beauty or enjoyment of winter (a category I firmly fit in).
Sharpe's love of nature shines through, although I often wondered if Mrs. Sharpe was afforded these same quiet, refreshing ambles through the nearby woods or if she was too busy with the house and children.
" Winter within us means vitality and purpose and throbbing life; and without us in our fields and woods it means widened prospect, the storm of battle, the holiness of peace, the poetry of silence and darkness and emptiness and death. And I have tried to show that Winter is only a symbol, that death is only an appearance, that life is everywhere, and that everywhere life dominates even while it lies buried under the winding-sheet of snow."
Sharpe's love of nature shines through, although I often wondered if Mrs. Sharpe was afforded these same quiet, refreshing ambles through the nearby woods or if she was too busy with the house and children.
" Winter within us means vitality and purpose and throbbing life; and without us in our fields and woods it means widened prospect, the storm of battle, the holiness of peace, the poetry of silence and darkness and emptiness and death. And I have tried to show that Winter is only a symbol, that death is only an appearance, that life is everywhere, and that everywhere life dominates even while it lies buried under the winding-sheet of snow."
February 12, 2024
"The trouble with those who say they hate winter is a lack of knowledge. They do not know the winter.; they never tramp the woods and fields in winter; they have no calendar of the rare, high-festival days of winter." What a sweet little book that reminds me to get out and enjoy winter, to get to know it a little better.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews