Thirty years ago, in December 1984, I moved from Seattle to Kodiak, Alaska. My Mom fretted. “When are you coming home?” To describe island life, I wrote letters to family and friends, and slipped a photograph or two in the envelopes.
If you live in California, winter’s passing is more of a transition. In Alaska, keeping tabs on day length is a statewide sporting event. As a gardener, I watch these things, even to the point of