Before...

Before the heavy rains, before the gusty winds, before the snowstorm...

before all this weather hit,

I gathered a large bunch of milkweed and brought them into the house.

The milkweed pods were open with their seeds and silken tufts spilling about.

I imagined these little umbrellas escaping all over the house,

but they have stayed in place,

trapped within the stillness of our walls.

Studying these silken umbrellas has gotten me dreaming

 of traveling with them to some warm and magical place!