TheBanyanTree: Signs of Spring

[Margaret R. Kramer]

This was the first morning in over a week that it wasn’t below zero.  The
temperature started going up last night and it was actually 12 ABOVE zero
when I got up.  We might have some flurries today, but no major snowstorms
are predicted until maybe Tuesday.  It felt balmy outside when I opened the
door to let Axel out.

I heard some spring bird calls when I was filling the feeders yesterday.  I’
m not sure what birds they were, but it was encouraging.  January is a month
of silence for the birds around here.  We see them, but don’t hear them.
When I hear that first song in February, I know spring is coming.

We have more light.  I can walk Axel at 5:00 pm now and it’s not dark.  In
fact, it’s not dark until around 5:30 or 5:45 pm now.  It’s light in the
morning around 6:45 am.  My tropical plants in the house are beginning to
perk up because they are getting more sunlight.

We watched the boys for about an hour yesterday.  They had colds, but we
couldn’t tell, since they went right down into the basement to throw a
football around and rough house a bit.  Axel always joins in the fun.  He
has a small football of his own.  We throw “Hail Mary” passes to him, too.

The boys had flu shots last week.  The flu is flying around Minnesota right
now and three children have died from it, so the flu shot clinics have long
lines.  Ray and I got our flu shots back in October.

Once they ran off some of their energy, we sat down and made Valentines.  I
got out some red, pink, and white construction paper along with crayons and
scissors.  The six year old can write “POLAR BEARS” and considers himself a
polar bear expert.  The seven year old is into sports – everything is
sports, sports, and more sports.  They’re growing up so fast – when I don’t
see them for a couple of weeks, it always amazes me how mature they’re
getting.

We’ll have the family over for dinner tonight for a little Valentine’s
celebration.  We got sick of each other over the holidays and then we go
through the quiet month of January with little entertainment.  Well, spring
is coming, and it’s Valentine’s Day with its emphasis on LOVE, so it’s time
for a little family get together and maybe a spirited game of Monopoly.

Spring training for baseball will start in another couple of weeks.  I’m
already planning on what we’ll do with our yard this year.  I’m thinking
about beginning to run a bit after work in order to get ready for the Human
Race, which is in March.  I have a great book of bike trails, and I’ll get
my bike ready soon.

Yes, we definitely have turned the corner on winter.

Margaret R. Kramer
margaretkramer at comcast.net

I love thee to the depth and breadth and height my soul can reach.
~Elizabeth Barrett Browning