Winter arrived suddenly this week — the kind of winter I remember from childhood. Not the hesitant, half-hearted versions we’ve had lately, with mud instead of snow and temperatures that never really commit. This one came quietly but decisively: frost in the mornings, fields turning white overnight, and that familiar crunch underfoot.

The cold isn’t severe, but the snow is generous. Here in central Poland, we weren’t hit too hard — at least not compared to elsewhere. In the mountains and the far east, snow buries cars completely by morning, as if winter decided to erase them for a while. Forecasts say this should hold until Thursday. It may not be much, but we’ll take it.

This photo came from a simple walk, the kind that feels uneventful at first. Fresh snow invites you to slow down and look closely. Before long, I noticed tracks crossing the field — roe deer. I followed them, hoping to glimpse a group moving through the landscape.

Nothing.

Nearing home, I began to lose hope. The light was softening into that flat winter calm, and I thought the tracks would be my only trace of life that day. Then — almost casually — a young roe deer stepped from a small clump of trees, straight into the open field and directly toward me.

It stopped.

For a few seconds, we only stared. It seemed as surprised as I was — frozen in that alert, delicate posture that belongs uniquely to winter. A brief mutual curiosity, framed by snow and silence. Then it turned and bounded away, disappearing as quickly as it had come. I caught another frame as it fled — a fleeting moment, already gone.

This is a young buck, his small antlers still in velvet — a detail that feels slightly out of season against the snow, yet perfectly natural. Moments like this are why winter walks never feel empty, even when nothing seems to happen.

For a few days at least, winter is back. And it feels like the one I remember.

Have you had a moment like this recently — an unexpected glimpse of nature that paused your day? I’d love to hear about it in the comments.