Waiting for Spring

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waiting for spring

Old snow — not a pleasant sight!

Spring, that season that all gardeners I know dream about when in the midst of a long, cold winter, sometimes seems, like Godot in Samuel Beckett’s play Waiting for Godot, that it will never come. This particular winter has had numerous days sporting wind chills of as much as 28 degrees below zero … and right now, outside my window, snow, sheened by a thin layer of ice, shines in the moonlight. Old snow along the roadsides has become an ugly, dirty slush that I for one am tired of.

But there’s hope. Spring has to be on its way, for a number of reasons.

My Own Internal Clock Says So

Though I live in Michigan and have for over 20 years, I grew up in Tennessee, where spring definitely arrives in March (although this year, they had a 10-inch snow just last week!). A person’s internal “seasonal clock” must develop in  that person’s formative years. In any case, mine has never moved to April, when spring generally arrives where I live. By March 15, I am convinced that spring is here, despite the evidence to the contrary that I see in front of me.

Puddle

Grandson enjoying a huge spring puddle. (Photo by Melanie Love.)

I look up “In Just-,” a favorite poem from childhood written by e.e. cummings. (I think perhaps one reason I liked his poetry is that he always wrote his name with no capital letters, always a bit startling back then.) The poem describes spring as “mud-lucious” and “puddle-wonderful,” words that evoke the season of snow-melt that lies just ahead. I can’t wait. I sort of want to play in a spring puddle like my grandson is doing!

Read “In Just” here.

The Weather Channel Says So

Last week, my look at the 10-day forecast on the Weather Channel yielded numbers like these for the coming high temperatures: 15, 20, 21, 19, and 10 degrees. Brrr! This week is a little better, with 35, 19, 22, 42, and 39 degrees. But next week promises near-balmy highs of 43, 46, 48, 45, and 36 degrees! Though a few setbacks may yet occur, the trend toward warmer weather is clear.

It’s almost time to haul out shorts, tee-shirts and sandals!

The Calendar Says So

The vernal equinox is just 11 days away. That is one of two times each year with the earth is not tilted in one way or another toward the sun. The hours of day and night are roughly equal all across the globe. Going past the equinox, the Northern hemisphere will tilt toward the sun, and spring will come to Michigan and Serendipity Gardens. Read more on the vernal equinox.

Willow2

This lovely weeping willow’s yellow stems are a harbinger of spring.

The Willows Are Turning Yellow

Willow trees are harbingers of spring, for sure. Always they leaf out earlier than other trees, and prior to that leafing, their stems turn a lovely yellow. When I see their golden hue, I know spring cannot be far away.

In fact, though my husband laughs at me, I would swear that all the trees look different at this time of the year. The word that comes  to mind is “pregnant.” The outlines of bare branches against the sky seem fuller to me, more substantive, as though life is stirring. The trees are ready for spring, too!

The Icicles Are Melting

Long icicles have hung immobile from the roof’s edge for months now. Yesterday, when it was sunny, half of the longest one broke off and crashed to the ground. Today, the icicles are melting. Outside my window, which is splashed with water, I hear the steady drip, drip, drip — strong enough at times to sound like it’s raining. The end of the ice is at hand … and as e.e. cummings notes, the start of the mud is, too.

People Are Taking Their Hats Off

Just today,  I watched two young mothers walking to their cars hat-free! Last week, both moms and their babies were covered from head to toe. This week, they’ve lightened up. I imagine they, like me, are longing for gentler, milder breezes and a sweet breath of fresh air, not to mention the ease of going outside without putting coats on both themselves and their young ones.

Red winged blackbird

This territorial male shouts the news: “It’s Spring.”

The Red-Winged Blackbirds Are Back

The red-winged blackbirds are back in Serendipity Gardens. Their raucous calls are a joy to hear. Even though the snow has not yet melted, even though the temperatures remain cold, they know it’s time for spring. For the past several years, I have taken note of their arrival, and it’s been within a day or two of March 5.

Looking for information about this bird’s migration pattern, I found a website called “Birds by Bent.” This site describes the migration of the Red-winged Blackbird this way:

“The redwings are among our earliest spring migrants; the eastern redwing leaves its winter haunts in the southern states before the end of February, reaches New England in March (rarely earlier), and arrives in eastern Canada in April or earlier. In Massachusetts, we look for the first of these harbingers of spring about the second week in March.”

My Conclusion

As is the case every year at this time, no matter what the weather is doing, spring is, unlike Godot, really and truly going to arrive. It’s time for birdsong, bursting buds, baby leaves, and blue skies. It cannot come too soon for me.

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