“Even the strongest blizzards start with a single snowflake.” ― Sara Raasch, “Snow Like Ashes” --

 “If we had no winter, the spring would not be so pleasant: If we did not sometimes taste of adversity, prosperity would not be so welcome.” — Anne Bradstreet --

 “What good is the warmth of summer, without the cold of winter to give it sweetness.” ― John Steinbeck, “Travels with Charley: In Search of America” --

 “No winter lasts forever; no spring skips its turn.” — Hal Borland --

“Every winter has its spring.” — H. Tuttle --

 "You expected to be sad in the fall. Part of you died each year when the leaves fell from the trees and their branches were bare against the wind and the cold, wintery light. But you knew there would always be the spring, as you knew the river would flow again after it was frozen. When the cold rains kept on and killed the spring, it was as though a young person died for no reason." -- Ernest Hemingway, A Moveable Feast --

 "Use what you have, use what the world gives you. Use the first day of fall: bright flame before winter's deadness; harvest; orange, gold, amber; cool nights and the smell of fire. Our tree-lined streets are set ablaze, our kitchens filled with the smells of nostalgia: apples bubbling into sauce, roasting squash, cinnamon, nutmeg, cider, warmth itself. The leaves as they spark into wild color just before they die are the world's oldest performance art, and everything we see is celebrating one last violently hued hurrah before the black and white silence of winter." -- Shauna Niequist, Bittersweet: Thoughts on Change, Grace, and Learning the Hard Way --