It’s a rainy day today in Minneapolis. In fact rain is supposed to fall all day long. Since it’s March I am feeling quite thankful for this rainy day. Imagine if all this precipitation was falling as snow!
Rainy Day
The daffodils I picked up on Sunday are brightening my day as the skies remain gray and overcast today. Also the plant light that I’ve set up over my seedlings brightens a corner of the living room and brings me joy every time I take a peek at the tiny plants.
They were not sprouting well until I placed a heating pad under the tray holding the peat seed starters. Before I started heating the seed starters only one lonely basil plant sprouted. Once I added heat, I quickly saw several more basil plants emerge along with 4 parsley plants and one rosemary seedling. I’m learning as I go since this is my first time starting garden plants from seed indoors.
Last Night the Rain Spoke to Me
Last night
the rain
spoke to me
slowly, saying,
what joy
to come falling
out of the brisk cloud,
to be happy again
in a new way
on the earth!
That’s what it said
as it dropped,
smelling of iron,
and vanished
like a dream of the ocean
into the branches
and the grass below.
Then it was over.
The sky cleared.
I was standing
under a tree.
The tree was a tree
with happy leaves,
and I was myself,
and there were stars in the sky
that were also themselves
at the moment
at which moment
my right hand
was holding my left hand
which was holding the tree
which was filled with stars
and the soft rain –
imagine! imagine!
the long and wondrous journeys
still to be ours.— Mary Oliver
It’s been fascinating watching the seeds emerge. I’m not sure how big they will get by May but I hope to be able to put them in my summer container garden.
Rapid Change
The outdoor environment has changed so quickly this week. At the beginning of the week our front yard was still snow covered and most of the backyard also had snow on it. Now the backyard is completely snow free and the only snow remaining is from where it piled up from clearing the driveway.
This lovely gentle rain that we are getting today will help wash some of the grit and grime of winter away. Already I can see the grass greening up a bit because of the rain.
Yesterday we had a pair of geese on the pond and in our backyard. I sat out on the deck for awhile and listened to them honking. And I also listened to bird song all around. What a joy to spend time outdoors in the sunshine yesterday!
A pair of mallards also came to visit, swimming at the edge of the pond where the ice had melted. Everything is waking up! Soon we’ll see frogs and turtles at the edge of the pond.
I am counting my blessings every day as I watch the season turn from winter to spring. We still have the April days of sticks and mud to look forward to before the world turns green again. But simply feeling the change in the air lifts my spirits.
How about you? What are you grateful for today my friends? Are you enjoying this gentle rain today?
May you walk in beauty.
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