Hello Spring!

I can see the last of the daffodils and the first of the tulips outside my window. It's not exactly a riot of color, thank you very much, squirrels. But it still says Spring to me.

I can't be the only one who found this past winter to be especially long. Really, really, extraordinarily long, not to put too fine a point on it.

We've had much colder winters. The temps here occasionally dipped into the tens, and maybe once into single digits. But in past years we've had stretches below zero, when I was afraid to stick my nose out the door, worried that it would instantly ice over and fall off.

And there wasn't all that much snow. A few moderate amounts, but nothing spectacular. No blizzards. I remember one year when the snow accumulation was so deep that when my husband got our driveway cleared, there were straight up and down, four foot walls on either side. I remember thinking it was too bad the kids were gone, they would have had a blast. If we didn't lose any of them.

But this winter felt longer than any in my memory. It doesn't take a genius to figure out that the restrictions of the pandemic not only compounded the cold and gray we lived through. It came after ten solid months of seclusion and isolation. In days gone by--very gone by, winter was something of a rest from the non-stop physical labor of the fields and all the work needed for basic survival. Although, somehow I don't think this applied as much to women. It seems that keeping a family clothed and fed and the house running was pretty much relentless.

My point is, we had nothing to rest from. I, personally, was ready for some fun and games and anything at all that could be considered "normal." I'm still ready for it and it looks as though things might be turning in that direction a little. Enough to give me hope.

And the spring flowers are always a happy, spirit-lifting sign for me. They mean new life, right?

What could be more exciting than the thought that this Spring could bring new life?

I suppose a resounding All Clear called from every roof- and mountain-top would be a start.  I feel like a race horse ready to burst out of the gate.

All right--my racing days are long over, but you get the idea.