Ukraine - random thoughts

There is something very special about the light in a Russian forest. Throughout northern Russia and Ukraine, there are stretches of woods and forest, some small pockets near urban areas, others stretching over thousands of kilometers. Somehow, the character of these forests is different than what I am used to in the American midwest, east or southeast. The trees here are mostly birch or white-barked pine. They tend to be tall and skinny. I've spent many an hour walking in such forests. I've long admired the landscape paintings of the nineteenth century Russian artist Ivan Shishkin, who so powerfully captures these places.

Here in Irpin, just west of Kyiv, we are surrounded by small woods. The conference center where we are gathered is itself heavily wooded.

I've always appreciated the way that light falls on these trees in a beautiful, golden way. I remember watching this out the window of buses near Nizhnii Novgorod, in wooded areas near Moscow, and many other places. There is something special, deep, and golden about that light, especially in the autumn. Today was my last day to enjoy that late afternoon wonder. The photo below was taken at the conference center. It hardly portrays 1%...