Spring around the corner
February 5th, 2010 by Kristin Green
As you all know, this past Tuesday was the Feast of the Presentation of the Prophet Phil. I celebrated and paid homage as usual but I think I might be losing faith in The Groundhog.
The sun was shining in Punxutawney, PA and Phil saw his shadow. According to tradition that means we’ll have 6 more weeks of winter weather. But here in Bristol, it was cloudy that day. If our woodchuck, a lay rodent, had been ceremoniously yanked from his burrow, it wouldn’t have been the sun sending him scurrying back to bed. Not only that, but other signs seem, to me, to be pointing directly at spring’s corner. Just this week the birds started to sing again – I heard mourning doves this morning – and the late winter, spring-predicting flowers are showing their colors. The sun is high enough to warm the greenhouse and I could swear that the silhouette of the trees has just changed – I think they’ve filled out a little. I prefer to think that spring is right around the corner – my gut says it’s only 6 weeks away.
Do you believe (in) Punxutawney Phil or the other indicators of spring?
February 5th, 2010 at 12:24 pm
Heh. I LOVE “The Feast of the Presentation of the Prophet Phil!” That made me chuckle.
Kim, I actually have to give my mother the credit for that. And her version (which I didn’t quite remember fully) was even funnier… -kris
February 5th, 2010 at 1:19 pm
Signs of spring? That means you’ll be for a good nor’easter to freeze everything back into submission.
Susan, It would seem that I’m inadvertently inviting jinxes lately… But at least these bloomers can take a temperature shift and I haven’t put my sweaters away yet. -kris
February 6th, 2010 at 5:23 pm
Just yesterday I thought it seemed there were more birds singing and fussing about.! Glad you mentioned it!
Jean, The shift from silence to bird noise seemed really noticeable this year – I don’t remember being so aware of it in past years … -kris
February 7th, 2010 at 5:43 pm
The Prophet has his loyal followers, I’m sure, but those of us who prefer to follow our own core beliefs will let personal experience be our guide to spring’s arrival. Despite this winter’s consistently cold temperatures here in southern New England, we haven’t had any extreme cold or warmth, and for this we should be thankful.
This very morning, some cheerful chirping (of which bird I know not) coaxed me out of bed. Yes it was 20 degrees F outside, but the sun was shining and I knew by mid day our greenhouse would need to be ventilated. Each day we are allowed more minutes of daylight. C’mon folks…Optimism should be contagious!
Kathy, It’s practically t-shirt weather in the greenhouse today. Never mind that it’s bitter cold outside and there’s snow in the forecast again. It feels for all the world to me like spring is close by! Even at home the light has shifted – though I still have to bundle up there. – kris