Midwinter – Dalkeith

Well the weather has been so miserable here in Scotland for the past week, that I don’t think we have even seen a glimmer of sunlight. It’s not that it’s been raining all the time, but that the sky is so heavy with clouds that not a single sunbeam has made it through to illuminate our grey winter world. This has not only brought a gloomy feel to the landscape, but has rendered conditions totally unsuited to taking photos. The grey cloud-filtered light makes for very flat pictures, which has left me feeling very uninspired. To try to counteract this today I have been looking back at some of my photos from midwinters past. These shots of a highland cow made me smile, so I thought I would share them.

This was three years ago, and the temperatures were well below freezing, as the midwinter sun was sinking fast towards the horizon. Walking the dogs in the grounds We came across this beautiful cow, just in time for me to capture the last rays of the winter sun dipping between her horns. There was something quite primal feeling about the light of the shortest day, contained within the horns.

I would dearly love to see the suns rays again this year, as we are all beginning to suspect that it might not make a reappearance……and I guess the only remedy for this would be some more feasting and drinking. Duty calls and we are off to celebrate with some newly arrived family. Who knows perhaps we will get lucky tomorrow and see the sun once more.

Midwinter sun at Dalkeith Palace

…here are the first few lines of a Scottish Blessing about light……

May the blessing of light be on you

-light without and light within

May the blessed sunlight shine upon you, like a great peat fire,

so that stranger and friend may come and warm himself at it