contrasts...

I am a lover of sunshine, of aqua seas and swaying palms. I love warmth and sand and azure skies... but I am making peace with winter. Even I must admit that a less vibrant landscape also has a certain beauty. Winter is quieter, slower, all tucked in, waiting.

I prefer winter and fall, when you feel the bone structure of the landscape - the loneliness of it, the dead feeling of winter. Something waits beneath it, the whole story doesn't show.

~Andrew Wyeth
I cannot say I prefer winter, but I am appreciating the merits of this season of reflection.

And of course...
O, wind,
If Winter comes, can Spring be far behind?
~Percy Bysshe Shelley