19 Feb 2011 -- Growing under the snow

We are on our third day of constant winds (and sun!). Yesterday was trash day, and for those working folks who couldn't get their cans in immediately, all I have to say is good luck in finding them. The east side ditches and yards are of full of trash cans—and who can say where they started out—across the street? Further away?  Even this morning, there was a big trash can rolling on down Shiawassee.

The big news is that in addition to our severe weather alert for high winds, we now have another alert for a winter storm from Sunday morning to Monday morning. Again, high winds mean blowing and drifting snow, plus a possible ice storm plus up to 8 inches of snow.

But at the moment the sky is blue, the air is incredibly clear, the sun is warm. Even though it is 26 degrees at the moment, with a wind chill of 18, it felt much warmer as I was standing outside feeding the ferals. It took me quite a while to locate their dishes this morning. When I finally found the black dish, well disguised in the garden, it was right beside a very bedraggled stem of catnip. There were four or five sad looking leaves left. I picked the stem and made Bela a very happy cat this morning. He chomped the leaves right down and he currently has a bad case of the sillies; racing through the house at full clump.  Pretty soon he is going to show up for munchies. 

I pulled in the driveway and did a double take when I saw this "palm" tree. The sun was low in the sky and the rays hitting the pine branch made it glow. Just that one limb from the pine was lit up and it was perfectly positioned over the top of the red twig dogwood, the dogwood looked like a palm tree trunk. Made me laugh. So I sat in the car for a moment or two and thought of all the times I've seen palm trees and the warmth associated with them. 

Yesterday I noticed that against the house, where two days ago there was over a foot of snow, we now have little green points sticking up--mostly crocus. Today, the snow melt revealed a patch of early daffodils, over 4 inches high.

I wonder what triggers them to grow. It has been single digit temperatures for months here, and still, something whispers grow; and they do. Our world astonishes me everyday.

Robin reminds me there is a note in the Talmud which says, “Every blade of grass has its angel that bends over it and whispers, 'Grow, grow.'”

She may be right. The snowdrops are coming up and blooming. Makes me happy!