Footprints in the snow

It was an early start this morning, leaving the house just after six.

There'd been a fall of snow at about four or five and a thin layer spread over the pavement.

For the first time for many, many years - not since I was a paper boy in the 1960s - I had the satisfaction of being the first to walk down to the bus stop across the virgin snow.

 At one point I stopped and looked at my footprints stretching back for a hundred yards.

I don't think I had felt so happy after getting up so early for many a year.

On top of that I heard the first strains  of the dawn chorus from the birds in the nearby woods, a reminder that spring is near despite the snow and frost.

Long distance commuting has its drawbacks, but sometimes the early mornings bring unexpected pleasures that you can enjoy just for yourself.

Back later in the week.