Spring, Is It?

The crocii have triumphed.

I love daffodils, and actually all flowers that come from bulbs, but the crocus is the flower which to me seems the bravest. They poke their heads out of the ground, sometimes around February, testing things out and getting snowed on, just, it seems, so that they can give the other flowers the all clear when it is. This year they've all been a little timid, though. I don't blame them. I haven't wanted to go out either.

It stayed warm here right up through the beginning of January, and then got cold and snowy and icicle-y. This week has been well-nigh torrential, and just to vary things a little bit, we've had some snow thrown in there as well. But today, right around midmorning, the sun finally came out. So I called YCW and we went for a walk again.

This time, because of all the rain, we were pretty sure her family's Private Property would have some submerged bits, so we went to a nearby living history museum where I used to work. One of the current employees is also a current Starbucks customer, and he gives me free passes, so I can take $20 walks with my friends for free.

We found some rather soggy patches there, too, but we told each other it still wasn't as bad as it would have been had we stayed at YCW's. Although . . . the lower fields by the farm were completely submerged, with Canada geese smugly swimming in them. We weren't walking in the fields, though. And we did meander into the general store for some fudge cookies.

YCW had a few crocii up at her place, but they were fairly exploding at "the Village." I wish I had had a camera with me so I could show you. But suffice it to say that the sight gave me hope for spring, and for the crocii and other bulb flowers struggling to make their way in the garden here, too.