Snowy Rill

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Three feet from the window, I feel cool air rolling down off the glass. Inside, I am wearing a hat, muffler, three layers of clothing and a blanket. Outside, the soft hollow roar of air moves through bare trees. It's black on the other side of the glass and 20˚F, well below freezing. Down the yard and out in the woods, a snowy rill wanders, defying the cold. There's shelter in this low wet spot, where spring will make its first appearance three months from now when the dormant skunk cabbage rise. I imagine hibernating box turtles among the tumble of small boulders, tucked into the mounds of fallen leaves trapped there, wrapped in a moist warmth of the vegetative decay.

- Nancy Boudreau

This painting is about 5" x 7" acrylic on gessoed mat board, protected in a cream-colored mat. As with all these little studies, the text above is handwritten on the back of the painting, which is also signed and dated. For comments and queries, please feel free to contact me directly at: nb@nboudreau.com