Quote of the day: “Which makes it ironic my favourite flower isn’t even indigenous to the British Isles, let alone Yorkshire. I don’t think there’s anything on this planet that more trumpets life that the sunflower. For me that’s because of the reason behind its name. Not because it looks like the sun but because it follows the sun. During the course of the day, the head tracks the journey of the sun across the sky. A satellite dish for sunshine. Wherever light is, no matter how weak, these flowers will find it. And that’s such an admirable thing. And such a lesson in life.” — Calendar Girls 2003 Movie

How to Brighten a Cold Winter’s Day… Sunflowers!

What a cold, snowy December it’s been! While the bright sunlight on the snow makes for beautiful scenes outdoors, the temperature outside has barely topped the zero mark today and with the wind it feels bitterly cold.

Roads have been slippery and traffic snarled making it a challenge to get places. Our street is bumpy and snow-covered.  I am thankful that I don’t usually fight rush hour traffic any more and can take more leisurely mid-day trips.

At night I’ve switched to wearing flannel pajamas and wool socks to bed, along with a ton of blankets. And during the day I’m wearing my long underwear in the house along with multiple layers, wool socks, and warm slippers and it’s still a bit chilly around the edges.

Time for some sunflower therapy.

Yesterday I stopped at Trader Joe’s to pick out some flowers to photograph. The sunflower bouquets caught my eye. They were so bright and cheerful.

Sunflowers are unpretentious flowers. They’re big, gaudy, and bright, like a pigtailed little girl with her face aglow and a big bright smile.  There is nothing fancy about them but their bright yellow round faces never fail to make me smile.

I’ve had fun photographing these beauties with my 18-270 mm Tamron lens and also with my 60 mm macro Tamron lens.

Here are some of my sunflower studies from yesterday and today.

Remember to find something beautiful in your life today.