Springing back to Life

posted April 23, 2008 - 2:08pm

Springing back to Life

Aahhh Spring…It’s that wonderful time of year, when the frozen, sterile, silence of winter gives way to the sounds and smells of the warmer season.

The snow begins to melt and the dog poop starts to thaw right along with it, yes… that too, is in the air - and, in all of the snow banks.

Houseflies mysteriously begin crawling up the windows and buzz around the room a bit in a drunk and disorderly fashion, never venturing far from the light of the window. When and where did they come from?
Outside, the mosquitoes and black flies awaken, after the woodpecker knocks on the tree they had been nestled up in all winter long. As the sun warms them, they begin to shed their tiny fur coats - apparently those just slow them down while hunting for fresh blood.

The songbirds have returned from some winter resort and begin their beautiful songs of courtship, which is rudely interrupted by the raucous, ranting of flocks of noisy black dots in the sky. The Canadian geese as they make their way back to their nesting grounds at some northern retreat, announce to all who may have missed it, SPRING HAS ARRIVED!!! Boy will they be surprised to land on ice.

The skunks start skulking about at night and early morning, leaving a not so pleasant, aroma for those brave enough to venture outside for that first cup of coffee on the deck. Sometimes sharing the scent with whole neighbourhoods and roadways.

On the more rural highways, the bears, all scruffy and grumpy looking, sit in the ditches eating the various roots (mostly dandelion), and monitor the traffic as it goes by. They are preparing for their trek into suburbia on the unending, relentless search for food . The moose and deer enjoy the highways as well, apparently the cars get rid of all the insects with windshield and grill thereby making roads a bug free zone for them.

For many folks, cabin fever is making way to spring fever as the days grow longer and they venture forth into the sunshine and puddles to enjoy the sights and sounds and smells of spring. Live it up in this time of renewal.