Somnolent Spring

 It amazes me how differently Spring can present herself each year.  2024 brought us a long, luxurious spring filled with temperate, sunny days, and blossoms galore.  

This spring, in contrast, is mildly underwhelming.  Walk outside with your eyes closed, and you’d swear it is still winter.  

Amazingly, the trees are still blossoming, as are the daffodils – however, they’re withering a bit from the morning frosts.

Every day, I keep hoping to feel some warmth.  And each morning, we once again build a fire in the fireplace to take the chill off.  The heat lamps in the barn remain on to keep our kitties warm.

We’ve had a couple days that hinted of spring, but for the most part, the cold has lingered.  It’s as if Spring is sleeping in this year, taking her time – having a slow morning (something of which we rarely have the luxury).

Still, patience pays off.  Spring will happen.  And once she’s at the tipping point, there will be no turning back.  I did notice, yesterday, as we took the dogs on a long woods walk…

that the ferns are beginning to unfurl.

I’ve come to understand that Spring happens in the woods from the ground up.  First the mosses perk up, then the grasses and weeds grow in patches of sunlight, followed by leaves emerging from the bramble.  All the while, tiny fern fiddleheads emerge from the leave-covered forest floor.  If it weren’t for the morning chorus of birds, all of this would sneak up on you… tiny, daily emergence of green here and there… and before you know it… BAM! it happened.  Everything is covered in verdant foliage seemingly overnight… when in actuality, it is a slow, steady, process – a miraculous one.  If one is not looking one misses the subtleties.

Still… could we please have a little warmth?  I’m not talking summer weather… just that sweet spot that lies between winter and summer.  Could we maybe have a little of that?  Please send some my way, if you can.

The garden is progressing as well as it can given the colder temperatures.  I’ve spent some moments here and there pulling emerging weeds.  What I am most excited for, though, is setting all of my seedlings into the ground and watching them explode in color.  Most likely, I have yet another month to wait.  It’s at this time of year when waiting is hard.

So, I am filling my hours with other activities…. stitching (planting gardens on my clothing, instead) 

 and continuing work on the current knitting project (it’s a wrap that’s too big now to stretch out while on the needles – it’s almost finished).

I am having Easter brunch here on the farm with family, so the next couple of days will be filled with cooking and baking.  Here’s to a peaceful, serene weekend for all of us!