Despite yesterday being one of those all-day snow events, not all that much managed to accumulate; the snowfall was just too altogether light in nature. But it was hauntingly beautiful to be out in the ravine in the shadowy light of a twilight atmosphere at mid-day with snow gently falling all about. Feeling the new snow underneath them, Jackie and Jillie are energized and even happier than usual to be out in the forest.

From a distance they knew friends were approaching and became excited about that. Eventually we came abreast of Tom and Terry. We hadn't seen them in quite a while, and our two little dogs are always happy to come across those they know, even people that don't have dogs of their own, like Tom and Terry. I was somewhat taken aback when Terry opened her arms wide and hugged me until she cleared up the mystery explaining she remembered that my birthday was in December, since her two sisters are also December babies.

We stood about talking for quite a while, and Jackie and Jillie, as usual patiently waited nearby exploring the woods while remaining in our sight as we exchanged information between ourselves; me and Terry and Tom and Irving. Separately, we heard that one of their neighbours a few days back had come to see them, to give them a 'heads-up' that he'd seen a strange black car parked in front of their driveway. And then the matter was turned on its head when a day later that very same neighbour's newly-acquired Lexus was stolen from his driveway.

Why not park it in the garage for safety? Well, seems the wife's BMW is always parked in the garage. Leaving us both separately with the unstated thought: why is it that people living in modest, one-garage homes feel they must possess two luxury vehicles? And we answer our own questions quietly between ourselves; a matter of skewed values. Then talk swerved to the yellow-vest riots in France and the Vancouver-stopover arrest of Huawei Technologies CFO.

And while we were talking, another woman we know slightly came by. She was looking for her little white West Highland terrier whom she 'lost' while walking it through the woods. We know the little dog, it isn't shy and it is curious and assertive, but still a little dog lost in the forest in winter is no laughing matter. As we continued our hike we were on the lookout for the little fellow but saw no sight of him in the next hour. It does happen occasionally that a dog will be 'lost' in the ravine. Inevitably someone will come across him, see its tags and contact its person.

From a distance between trails with intervening forest we saw Sheila out with her three dogs and she shouted across to us to look out for the lost dog. We shouted back asking if her husband's surgery that morning had gone well, and she responded that it had. That man has undergone so many diverse surgeries he must be well and truly fed up, but he isn't the kind to dwell on such matters; once he recovers he immediately returns to his passion for walking their dogs now that he can no longer indulge in ironman tournaments.

The transcendent loveliness of the landscape unfolding before us as we traipsed along the trails kept us in a semi-spellbound state of appreciation for our good fortune in being able to so easily access a wonderful natural landscape that the ravined forest represents. For all those who make use of its presence to restore the equilibrium in their lives through its reposeful effect on one's thoughts and balance in perspectives, it is invaluable.