She didn't know what she had dreamt about but she woke up that morning with a smile on her lips. Looking over to the man beside her, she saw him smiling right back and through the blinds she could tell the morning sun was already rising.

She knew it was going to be a beautiful day.

She always took a long walk after sending him to work and that day was no different. The chill of the winter morning invigorated her and the quiet serenity of the usually bustling town square calmed her.

Going up the hill, past silent gardens and dimly lit houses, the delicious smell of burning firewood escaped from almost every other chimney. At night the smell of roasting wood in the fireplace is even stronger but the delicate scent of lingering smoke could not escape the quiet air and she loved it. One can hardly tell that the neighbourhood was just beginning to stir.

There was no snow but as she made her way to the lake, the tell tale signs of winter became piercingly evident. There was a stillness in the air that only the winter morning could bring and a stillness in the water that only the winter night could leave behind.

She had never seen ice on the water before and to witness the lake frozen in ice as far as her eye could see took her breath away. She knew it was too thin to walk on but it didn't stop the excitement and awe from bubbling in her.

Just then a flock of geese flew overhead in formation as if heading South, circling the small island that stood alone on the middle of the lake before disappearing from sight as quickly as they had appeared. Resisiting the urge to make herself comfortable on the bank and rest her feet on the ice, she walked on along the lake's edge, marvelling at the stillness of everything one could see and the energy of everything that one couldn't.

She slowly made her way to the harbour where only the big boats remain docked for the winter not at all expecting the picture that unveiled before her.

Approaching the harbour, she caught sight of a flock of birds in the water, looking suspiciously similar to the very flock that had flown by her just minutes before. It was until she stood at the very edge of the pier, peering out to the birds could she tell that they were not swimming but rather sitting around on the ice. Some walked and a few skated across but they looked very much at home, much to her amusement.

Barely having gotten over the surprising sight of the geese hanging out on the ice, suddenly she caught sight of 2 more birds landing right in the middle of the flock. What would usually be a graceful slide into the water and a calm swim around the lake turned into an amusing skid on tail feathers and flapping wings as the bird veered uncontrollable before coming to an unceremonious stop near the feet of some geese. It was then that she realised that both the newcomers were unmistakably smaller than the flock. She watched bemused as the 2 birds, who turned out to be ducks, began moving away from the group with nary a pause. Wings outstretched to make itself look bigger than it really is, the two ducks waddled away as quickly as their tiny feet could take them with what one could hardly call grace and distinction.

The ducks with the identity crisis quickly joined their nearby comrades and managed to blend in quickly and quietly into the right flock this time turning her attention to the ducks resting barely ten metres from the geese. Instead of just sitting on the ice, the ducks had convened around an opening in the ice close to the bank. The ice oasis resembled a busy beach with ducks lounging around on the edge of the ice and some ducks gracefully swimming around in the icy cold water. All that was missing were the parasols, beach chairs and sunglasses.

Staring into the frozen lake, she could make out hundreds of tiny white fish moving about just below the icy surface. With the sun firmly up in the sky shining down full force, she knew this sight would not last long but the short glimpse of nature at its best that she had been gifted with, was enough to thrill the city girl, fill her with wonder and lift her spirits.

Life felt truly beautiful that day.