The Stark Stillness of Winter

Today, as I write, winter envelops the Temple in stillness, inviting me to contemplate the vastness of existence. The snow-covered landscape stretches silent as the world slows, inviting me to explore its serene simplicity. The grey sky, heavy and soft, dissolves the boundary between above and below.

The apparent absence of wildlife amplifies the quiet. Without the songs of birds, the silence becomes almost tangible, pressing against the edges of my awareness. This absence is a kind of fullness, and a call of latent energy waiting beneath the frozen surface.

Motionless trees stand like sentinels, their bare branches reaching skyward, etched in elegance against the clouds. Their stillness invites my stillness, mirroring the profound serenity of the moment.

Motionless water lies under a thin glaze of ice, mirroring the sky in stillness. Its calm surface, undisturbed by wind or current, reflects this moment outside of time.

In this stark and solemn landscape, the ordinary blends with the infinite. Here, at least for the moment, I can rest, unburdened by the distractions of busyness, and face a blank canvas, ready to create something new.