Beginnings, First Days, Initiations, Setbacks

I have asked my memoir group, snowed out and unable to meet, to write for next week about "Resolutions: Kept and Broken." One member said, "Already?" Yes. We don't get enough sunshine in Cleveland; we have mounds of snow.

The expectation of a first class is shattered. Skiiers might like the snow -- and energized wolves -- but some of us get dispirited. We must find ways to shed our own light.

Robin, our stray, seems exhilarated in snow. In Robin's honor, I post the wolves.

A critical habitat is a specific term explained by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Without pushing the analogy over the edge, for anyone to flourish, we need appropriate contexts. May readers find such places for themselves and remember to consider their importance for creatures on our planet in 2010 and beyond.

Photo: Arizona Game and Fish Department, Part of the Mexican Wolf Recovery Program