A Year in Nature

A Year in Nature: December 31

At the end of the year, I often find myself thinking about how we mark the lives that have mattered to us. In winter especially, when the ground is quiet...

A Year in Nature: December 30

I’ve been paying close attention to my mood these past couple of days. There’s an idea that shows up often in Stoic philosophy, the belief that a person’s sense of...

A Year in Nature: December 29

During the summer, I grow flowers not just for the garden, but for the winter months ahead. I cut some blooms with the goal of drying—strawflower, statice, everlasting daisies—and hang...

A Year in Nature: December 28

One chilly winter morning, while we were still living in the suburbs, I bundled up my tiny son in his stroller and stepped outside with my husband for a short...

A Year in Nature: December 27

This year has felt like a year of pinecones, mostly due to my son. Everywhere we go on the farm, my toddler and I have been stopping to pick them...

A Year in Nature: December 26

In the heart of winter, when snow lies deep and soft, I find myself following the same little network of footpaths again and again. There’s the walk from the house...