In the blue shadows

Snow all day on Saturday, beginning just as we left for the big market down in Breo and continuing until after dark. We wanted to visit our house in the hush of snowfall, but thought better of it when the wind picked up, drawing a billowy white curtain across the view from our apartment balcony. Instead we stayed indoors, made a fish soup with cozze (mussels) and fresh merluzzo (cod), potatoes, fennel, saffron.

Sunday we woke to bright sunlight and the sound of snowmelt dripping from the eaves. Pulled on our boots and went out to meet the sparkling day. By now the little house and walled courtyard are familiar to you; probably I could eliminate photo captions altogether. But look closely at the doorway with a terra cotta pot in the lower left corner: at first glance I thought some elves must have left us a pot of my favorite vermilion pansies! Then I saw the others lining the stairway, and I began to understand what Jim finds to do during the long hours he spends there.

Before we knew it, blue shadows lengthened toward afternoon. The sunlight cooled and thinned, reminding us the days grow ever shorter, the sun rides lower in the sky. We locked up and climbed the steep road out of the valley, toward a late lunch and the Sunday NYTimes crossword.