Winter in Full Retreat

I just got back from my nightly walk in the fields behind the house. It is amazing how fast winter has retreated over the last week or so. It was not so long ago that the only way I could get back there was on my snowshoes. With one of the most horrendous winters behind us with more snow on the ground than we have had in many years, it is all but gone from the fields, and the yard as well. Oh yes there still are pockets such as on the north side of the house where the warming sun does not get, and back at the wood line the snow is still piled thick however you can tell it is still in a hasty retreat, it seems to go back a little further each night I get back there. The deer have been active, there is sign all over the field piles here and there, and tracks in the few remnants of snow scattered through the field.

When winter is full upon us we live in despair that we will never see bare ground again. It is amazing how as the days grow longer that we seem to lift out of that despair more and more every day, and then when the warm temperatures hit it is like a life preserver has been thrown to us. This has been a very extraordinary year with record snow amounts on the ground the saving grace has been that the snow pack came and stayed before the frigid cold weather. The frost was not driven deep into the ground as has been the case in years past, so as the snow melts the ground has been able to absorb it and the mud and flooding that most people feared has not really materialized. On top of that the heavy rains April is known for in New England have not reared their ugly head causing a huge rapid melt off. Life is a cycle and we are slowly being born anew in northern New England. There is a crocus in bloom in the front garden the purple hue a welcome change to the life of white and gray we have know for so long. the daffodils are growing and I saw evidence of their buds on the delicate stems. If you look close under the brown stalks of grass you can see the slightest hint of green coming out of the ground in the field that is lush in the summer months. It reminds me that no matter how bleak your life may seem there is a spring around the corner to help lift you out of your despair, and it has been a winter of despair here this year with the building industry in its tailspin. I tried to keep a bright positive outlook but it was so hard when you watched your checking account empty out faster than the money was coming in. But with the spring comes a new perspective and a rebirth so to speak. it is easy to feel invigorated and energized with the warming weather and retreating snow.

So here is to a rebirth and a new outlook on life.