Tomorrow, a brisk but sunny Saturday with an expected high of 30° and snow blanketed meadows and wooded trails, will be an opportunity to explore Rosslyn’s backlands on cross-country skis. Care to come along? But before we play, we work. Today’s a perfect day for groundskeeping, for pruning trees and bundling brush.
Suddenly it’s Friday, February 21, 2009. Sixteen year ago. A sun soaked afternoon, the bluebird dome dramatized with puffball clouds. 
A typical late winter outing with my dog, a labrador retriever named Griffin. I call it groundskeeping, and it is. But it’s among the most enjoyable sorts of work mindful. Meditative. Meandering. The creative art of pruning and training landscape trees. Sometimes, fruit trees. Apples and pears. Crabapples that we grow for the deer. But today I’m wending my way through the landscape, observing, thinning, shaping, and observing again. An ongoing initiative to transform overgrown fields into healthy meadows, as aesthetically appealing and wildlife welcoming.
As hints of spring coincide with cabin fever, I head outside. To wander. To wonder. Wayward. Ambling Rosslyn’s backland, groundskeeping, preparing for spring.
And by my side, Griffin (then) and Carley (now). Companions as keen on groundskeeping as I…
Our small family has always included a dog, three yellow Labrador retrievers so far, and it’s hard to imagine life without our adventure loving companions. Rosslyn, from the waterfront to the wilder backland, has proven the perfect sanctuary for Tasha, Griffin, and Carley. Endless opportunities to romp and explore. And, yes, to help me with groundskeeping. Griffin was especially keen on dragging pruned branches out of my tidy pile, spreading them just as soon as I gathered them again.
Tomorrow’s photos will offer a flash forward to a present tense look at these maturing meadows. More snow, bigger trees, expansive views. I hope you’ll join me. 
What do you think?