It sneaks up on you. The puffy coat is left on the hanger in favor of a lighter fleece. The warm knit beanie stays in the hat basket when you embark on the morning outdoor adventure. Before you know it, the sandal strap tan lines on your feet-tops come into focus. The calendar says that spring starts in March, but these are the things that inform us that the season has really arrived.
Weeds pop up through the driveway cracks. Birds start their songs before the morning alarm wakes us and frogs fill the twilight with a chorus of croaking. Chilly morning drives to work still require the car heat cranked, yet the warm afternoons beg for a top-down (or window-down) drive home, wind blowing hair wild with loud thumping singalong music.
Before you know it the coat closet door will stay closed, and wide-open windows will bring warm breezes through the house around the clock. Shades might be drawn to keep the heat out, and hat wearing will return - this time with brims to protect our noses from resembling cherries. As much as I love summer, it’s time is not here yet.
For now I will embrace all of the unremarkable, individual changes that, when taken together, signal that spring is creeping in, right under our noses, little by little.
Mud slips and squishes below
Spring trail joy abounds
