A Beautiful Spring Waltz

Spring unfolds eventually,
And not in a sudden rush.
The days must warm intentionally,
The winds must die to a hush.

Not overnight, or at our whim,
But purposefully and slow,
Days of longer light begin
As goes the ice and snow.

Sooner or later, the swollen bud
Will burst, and bloom emerge,
Quietly, gently, willfully
In a scheduled, easy surge.

A deliberate plan on Nature’s part,
It’s the dance that she knows best.
Embrace each colourless day that’s left,
And patiently wait for the rest.

– © 2008 Nancy J. Bond

I’m sure the little redpoll (above) doesn’t look perturbed by the latest snowfall to grace the Maritime provinces.    In fact, he looks quite content on his snowy perch, showing off his newly brightened red vest, of course.  When we woke this morning, you could almost hear the collective groan of the entire town as they faced another morning of shovelling out.  But really, what’s the point?  We have many such surprises here each year — I figure one might as well embrace them and go with the flow as complain about them.  Nature will give us spring in her own good time, as she wills it.

One thing about a snowy day so late in the season is that it brings the birds out in great numbers.  Mr. Redpoll was only one of many who hung out around the feeder this morning.

This mourning dove looks like he has cold feet!

Pigeon got his feathers wind-ruffled and is happy to clean up the leftovers and spillage.

Poor sparrow looks quite lonely — it’s wonderful to hear their song again.

Blue jays cawed from up high, in a maple tree (that shows signs of swollen bloom buds)…

…and from the crabapple tree off the balcony which is also displaying leaf buds!  Poor thing looks a bit wind-tousled, too.

Finally, I had to include this photo of Mr. Gold Finch, with his little chest all puffed out against the wind — see how brilliant his colour has become?  A sure sign of Spring, along with those leaf buds on his perch.

Sometimes, I wish Mother Nature would Cha-Cha her way into Spring, but this year, at least, it seems she prefers a beautiful, slow waltz.