Winter Magnolia

magnolia blooms
while the snow is descending
seasonal fusion

Winter returned late last night, with a savage blizzard blowing off the moor. While the moor was snowbound in the morning, by the time I'd dropped a few hundred feet down toward the station it wasn't quite as thick on the ground.

That's where I found this magnolia, which a week ago was enjoying an early summer. I'm not sure what impact the arrival of snow and cold temperatures will have on it, but I expect it will be something of a shock.

Once in town I was chasing statues for today's Bradford Photo a Day challenge. A dusting of snow always has a transformative effect, although the fact that it was still snowing made photography a challenge. I ended up going with "Suffer the Little Children," a detail from the statue of the Victirian reformer Richard Oastler. I was though very tempted by this image of Queen Victoria trying out for the lead role in the Phantom of the Opera.

My mini-easter break starts here. Not as long as I was hoping for, but a break is a break. I'm looking forward to the Saltaire blip meet tomorrow to kick off the long weekend.