Frost traces the grass beside the Grand Canal in Monasterevin. Beneath the drawbridge, amber and white lights stretch across the dark, icy surface. A familiar place takes on a different character in the December night.

Winter asks us to look more slowly. The brightness of summer has gone, but there is still much to notice: the fine outlines of frozen blades, the colours caught on the canal, the bridge connecting one bank with the other.

In Advent, we wait for light while learning to recognise what already shines. Here, beside the water, a small reminder: darkness need not disappear before light can reach us.