The thaw I saw
For weeks we've been surrounded by the frozen stillness of winter white, but this morning we saw green and heard the sounds of water rushing down a hillside and felt the sun on our backs and suddenly believed that winter will not last forever. North-facing hillsides still show snow and ice, rapidly melting and filling our creek and the nearby rivers. Last night I drove home in the dark and was startled to look to my left and see a glassy sea alongside the highway where a cornfield ought to be, but our creek has dropped a few feet already so we're unlikely to see flooding unless we get a deluge.
The morning sun striking ice made the cliffside sparkle as if spangled with sequins, but I couldn't capture the effect on camera any more than I could capture the sound of rushing water or the chatter of a pileated woodpecker flicking from tree to tree. The forecast calls for more snow and subzero temperatures next week, but this week's thaw provided a necessary respite from cabin fever, making the bleak midwinter a little more bearable.
4 comments:
The one good thing about a cold and snowy winter like we've had this year is that when we see signs of spring, it feels like a miracle.
I totally agree...but then I get so excited about the miracle that I go hiking in the woods when it's still kind of mushy up there and I fall on my butt in the mud and twist my knee and have to hobble back home. But I'll take the miracle!
You two are at least a month closer to spring than I am, I bet.
I'm despairing!
I think I'll go skiing. That will help!
And it's snowing again today, with temperatures dropping rapidly. The snow started while I was driving to campus this morning, but it coated the roads so quickly that no one was prepared and the city streets were treacherous. I'm pleased to report that my anti-lock breaks passed the test! Now I'm wishing I'd worn my boots.
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