By Elizabeth Ricketson: Something was different. The dull light outside my early morning window was subtly illuminated. The first snow. A quiet glistened. The ochre earth was covered in white. Twigs and long-dormant grasses poked through the patchy blanket. The gray November skies battled between a cold rain and soft, spitting flakes. Battling to get it seasonally right yet up against a lack of corporation. The struggle was obvious. More snow is in the forecast. Temperatures will plummet this...

By Elizabeth Ricketson: An uninspired foliage season has passed. Leaves were influenced by the severe drought that had impacted Central Vermont for several months. Browned and fragile, easily they dropped from the trees at the mere suggestion of a breeze. The colors, while dulled, were magical still. A hard frost. Thirty-two degrees this Sunday morning with November gray skies overhead. Stick season in full view. The secrets of the forest floor and its inhabitants now exposed. The spine of...

By Elizabeth Ricketson: Rain has been scarce in Vermont. We are in drought conditions that is not without impact. Lawns are scorched. The earth is dry and dusty. Daily wildfire concerns. Walks and hikes show visual changes to our landscape. Are the colors of the leaves warming, or are they browning from thirst? I wonder. It is hard to discern the coming of a new season from the disappointment of the last. The early morning sky has taken on a seasonal golden hue. The vibrant emerald greens...