Friday, February 20, 2009

Spring is Coming! Really!

Yesterday morning while milking, I noticed the willow tree in the corner of the hay meadow. It was brushed with a pale yellow green wash. It appeared to glow. My toes and nose were numb, milking in the brisk morning wind. Even so, the heart warmed a degree or two, enjoying the green glow of the little willow tree. What a relief. After 2 weeks of 80-90 degree temperatures, it is truly brutal to be cold again.

Never fear. Spring is almost here. In a few weeks we will be seeing blossoms, I hope.

We are readying the barn for goat babies which we expect to begin arriving in a couple of weeks. It is time to plant peas and spinach. That means the free-ranging chickens need to move to another area to free-range so they don't decimate the new garden. It is more fun to work in the garden in March than in cold February, but today's Proverb is a good reminder:

"A sluggard does not plow in season; so at harvest time he looks but finds nothing." Prov 20:4

Is a sluggard a cold person, wanting to stay tucked under the down comforter? No, I think it must be the cold person that doesn't just want to stay tucked under, he/she DOES stay tucked in until the warm days of May!

"No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace..." Hebrews 12:11

Not to mention PEAS!!! We are still enjoying last year's abundant harvest of frozen green peas. I will try to endure the discipline of gardening because I want more of those sweet treats for next winter. Maybe this weekend or early next week we will be getting the garden beds ready.

3 comments:

CountryDew said...

Argh, planting so early! Gosh. I don't usually put anything in the ground until late March. How do you keep the frost from killing them?

gingerhillery@mac.com said...

You have to plant only stuff that likes very cold weather, like peas! Most everything has to wait to March. Unfortunately, there are things to be done in the garden to get ready for March, too! We usually get a nice warm spell right before Valentine's Day which propels me out to the pea patch. That spell hit when I was in India. Grr. Now it is so cold I can't imagine getting a thing done.

Beth said...

Oh, I do love willow trees and the way, in early spring, they are "brushed with a pale yellow green wash" as you say so beautifully. I've been wandering around our property most every day, looking for new little green shoots and buds. I don't think I've ever felt so eager for Spring, though it certainly does mean the start of the busy season!