Harbingers of Spring

Robins hang around for most of the winter down in this river valley so the real harbinger of Spring for me is the song of the red wing blackbird.  While out doing an afternoon walk in the sun earlier this week I could hear one's song but couldn't find it.  Usually they travel in groups.  Eventually I spotted one lonely blackbird in a bare tree.  One warm afternoon last week, a bee flitted by as I sat on the back porch to soak up the first warm rays of the year.  The maple bugs were crawling all over the house siding that was being hit by the sun this morning.  It has been a mild winter but even so, these things are early for here.  

I spotted house finches gathering nest bits to take to the birdhouses in the back yard.  One had a piece of cloth so large he looked drunk as he reeled around trying to pack it home.  I laughed.  It doesn't take much to make me laugh does it?

There have been small birds at the feeders all winter but the numbers have grown the last few weeks of warmer weather.  Some folk dislike the mourning doves and their cooing but I find it soothing, even at 5:00 in the morning.  Mind you, I don't have to get up to go to work later as I am retired and can roll over and sleep some more.
But then I find train sounds soothing too if I have earplugs to dull their toooooottts  a bit in the middle of the night.  In the daytime I just enjoy the sounds.

We are bound to get more snow here in Canada before May.  The Queen's birthday long weekend in May is considered to be the time when  it is safe to plant vegetable gardens.  I can never wait that long to put some annual flowers into the beds closest to the house.  It is also safe to plant sweet peas then.  They remind me of the Queen Mother and my Nanny for some reason.We also noticed some snowdrops 

out in the front of the B/B we are living in for this winter, and some crocii patches have begun to pop up.  Joys and more joys.  The lilies and irises are poking up too.  Now we need some good soft rains.  

Spring is coming and March came in like a lamb, so that old saw may mean nothing this year, we hope.  But today the wind and rain are like the Lion.... so that says winter is not over. 
                                                                


I need to research some of the biblical references for these sayings and old teachings.




I was  fortunate enough to have another study session with Aelfric to discuss the course he is taking and I am auditing.  It is fascinating.  However, as I read the history I tend to get a little disgruntled with all the quibbling over what now seems to be minor issues.  I have to remind myself that people fought over these, to me inconsequential issues, so that I might have the freedom of religion I do now.  It is much like the women's  Movement and their right to vote and be classified as full citizens (not chattel) and entitled to all human rights.  Each of those little quibbles took years of wrangling to open our brains to the human rights issues that needed righting.  I won't start on the Civil Rights issues.  Christ was the radical who tried to tell us all this about Justice and Human Rights and He was killed for it.  Some of us still don't get the main messages he was trying to teach us.