Let me tell you the story behind this beautiful and serene shot. It was taken after a snow storm on December 31, 2016.

My eldest son was home for the holidays for the first time since 2010. He had not been able to get home for the holidays because of his days in college, and then of course, his career as a multi-media journalist kept him busy.

I decided that it was a good opportunity to get family photos taken. I wanted the backdrop to be the landscape of Alaska: the snow, the naked birch trees, and all its serenity.

This was a crazy notion. There was a snow storm brewing that week, and weather warnings were everywhere.

The storm came. I remember several numbers being called:

“5 inches for sure!”

“No, dude. That has to at least be 10!”

The photo shoot was rescheduled from Thursday, December 29th to the 31st. My son had to be on his flight back to El Paso, Texas on the red eye that evening.

Rachel Marney, our photographer, and I decided to schedule the photo shoot at 12:00 p.m. with some hope of light.

As we drove to Creamer’s Field, the skies hinted at a bit of sun behind the dark mass of clouds.

And, at 12:00 p.m., Tommy said, “this is the golden hour to take photos.”

He was right. The skies parted that day for a fleeting moment, and gifted us with such beauty.

I told Rachel that her angel was watching over us that day.