Redwing Blackbirds sing in concert with American Robins and Northern Cardinals and the Carolina Wren that's taken to sleeping on our porch every night.
And what about the frogs? Oh the frogs - they are the star of the show right now. The watery warm nights elicit such zeal, such hunger, such determination.
Ceremonially we tour this little patch of ground we call home and find that our tours take not 30 minutes, but an hour and 30 minutes.
How will we accomplish anything else? Maybe we won't and maybe that's ok. Maybe really, we are here to love and celebrate and to offer kindness, respect and our land restoration powers and not let one more day pass us by without acknowledging the pure miraculousness of it all.
American Hazelnut blooms in males and females; a surprise and delight to find in mid-March.
The Silver Maple says, "Look at me; I flower so early; I am hardy; I offer food resources to bees early in the spring; I, too, help pollinators. I, too, offer beauty to you flower-starved souls. Look up."
Harbinger-of-spring and Trout Lily say, "Yes, what Silver Maple said. Also, look down. Look all around. Listen to us."
Moths, in their tight shelters, stay dormant until the right blend of warmth, sunshine and considerations other than those we humans know are met.
Unknown species:
Polyphemus or Luna Moth:
Promethea Moth:
Others don't make it to this season of renewal, at least in the way we think of life. In their death though, begins new life. The radical recycling of nature fuels all future life and that makes us think differently about death.
Old life births new life. A mighty Chinquapin Oak fosters a young Hackberry. Thinking of what we cannot see: the twining of roots, the sharing of nutrients, the communication of life events, creates a pause in our walk. We sit, we stop thinking and we mostly feel the richness of it all.
A beech nut stowed last fall waits for discovery by the hider or another hungry belly or to tumble to the Earth and create new.
The Scribbler moth emerged from winter slumber and writes chapters on our hearts on such topics as endurance, resiliency, purpose, rest, idleness, beauty....
Green-headed Coneflower rises strong from the soil, amongst last year's Cup Plant stalks. They invite us to also be strong; to never give up; to bring light to the world.
The sunshine offers the golden warmth only created by that one celestial being in the sky. The feel on our skins, on our Minnie Pearl's furred body, on the greening plants is a balm, a tonic so needed at this particular moment in time.
Peaty soil ringed by Burr Oak leaves didn't ask, but begged to be smelled: to be picked up, rubbed between our fingers and inhaled. The Earth scent confirmed what we always knew to be true. "I am alive," the soil says. "I give you life. I deserve respect. Tiger Salamanders burrow in me here. I hold life. I give life. I am life."
The Red Velvet Mite climbs the mighty tree tower. "I am here, too. I offer you enchantment."
And we, your friends, celebrate the Father Red Oak, the Red Velvet Mite, the wisdom of the Earth and all her inhabitants. Our days are filled with joy because we slowed down the achievement quest and now recognize, the biggest and best achievement of all is to truly live our lives like it's our one and only.
Love,
jennifer and steve
P.S. Curious about the plant nursery? Find details here.