I cut handfuls of dead flowers from my garden this week. Their shapes are interesting. Petals twisted. Leaves furled as if frozen in motion.

In my studio I observed their colors. You could say they’re all brown. But when I took the time to look I saw so many variations. Lights. Darks. Warms. Cools. I saw rusts and creams and golds and ochres and deep chocolates. The more I looked, the more colors I noticed.

This sort of awareness takes time. Patience. It requires I slow down.

On Wednesday I sent my Joy Letter to subscribers (you can sign up here). In it I talked about celebrating the quiet gifts of December. Gifts like dramatic skies. A rainbow spotted around the moon. The feel of breathing deeply of chill air.

In winter I miss my garden, but it’s still here. In the subtly beautiful stems of finished or slumbering plants. In hidden roots resting underground preparing for new spring energy and growth.

Last week I invited you to grant yourself permission to show up unapologetically with all of your quirks. Today I want to invite you to discover the gifts of the season.

The quieter gifts. They’re easier to miss. But they’re no less beautiful.

Get quiet.

Be slow.

Do something different.

And soak them in.

I’ve been thinking a lot about doing things differently. The way I work. The way I think about my work. Schedules. Habits. Even inspiration. I’ve come back to my word of the year again and again lately.

OPEN.

Open to doing things differently. Open to possibilities.

Much of this is subtle, like the quiet beauties of the winter garden. Sometimes it’s the thinking that’s important. Underground. Unseen. Some other shifts are more obvious.

This week I hung a show at the McIntosh Memorial Library. I’ve shown my art at the library multiple times over the years. But I’ve never exhibited prints of my work there or anywhere else. Some of the prints are very small, just 4x6. I adore the small prints, love how the details shine even at that size.

The decision to display prints instead of original paintings was a last-minute choice, made in part due to challenges beyond my control and in part due to a desire to shake things up. I had a hiccup of doubt before I hung the show, but now that it’s up I’m so happy with how the exhibit turned out.

I especially love the way the print of my sunflower painting from this past summer looks against the green display wall.

(Prints of this painting are finally available in my Etsy shop in three sizes).

December can be a busy month, a frenzy of activity leading to the holidays. (Something I always resist). But December is also the beginning of winter’s quiet.

One of the gifts of December and of the winter is the chance to get quiet. To slow down. To turn inward for reflection, listening deeply to our hearts.

Whether December is bustling for you or more peaceful. I hope you’re taking time this month for yourself. To look for its subtle beauties and your own. Slow down and get quiet. Observe and listen. What are you noticing? Maybe you’re even discovering a world of colors where you thought there was only one.