January Snowfall 2011 • Seminary Campus • Deborah Belonick
Poet Emily Dickinson made falling snow sound romantic:
It sifts from leaden sieves, it powders all the wood,
It fills with alabaster wool the wrinkles of the road.
It makes an even face of mountain and of plain, —
Unbroken forehead from the east unto the east again.
It reaches to the fence, it wraps it, rail by rail,
'Till it is lost in fleeces; it flings a crystal veil....
But, here at our seminary in Crestwood, we're just wondering if it ever will stop!
This winter 61" inches of snow have fallen on our campus, far exceeding the average annual snowfall of 38" and quickly approaching the record snowfall of 89.5", which "flung a crystal veil" over Westchester County during the winter of 1995–1996.
Nonetheless, the snow has inspired a number of photographers, including our Dean, Fr. John Behr, and our Associate Director of SVS Press, Fr. Benedict Churchill, to snap scenes of wintry wonders. We want to share these beautiful images of "powdered wood" and "alabaster wool" with our readers, and nod to Ms. Dickinson, who understood so well the transformative effects of fallen snow.
