Yarrow Sprouts

It has been several weeks since I blogged, mostly because I have been so sick. I'm slowly improving, just in time to notice the yarrow sprouting from the ground in my back yard. It encourages me greatly to see new life in spring. 

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Brote de Milnerama

He pasado varias semenas sin escribir en mi blog, mayormente porque he estado enfermo. Ahora estoy mejorando, justo a tiempo para notar que las plantas de milenrama están brotando de la tierra en mi jardín. Me anima mucho ver la vida nueva en primavera. 

Spring

My friend Carole invited me to Drumheller the other day to explore the emergence of spring. She is enrolled in a master's program with a strong ecological component, and so she has taken an interest in preserving the natural beauty and diversity of Drumheller Springs. Perhaps most interesting of all, she is looking for evidence of frogs in the vernal pools. So far, none have been observed, but we have both heard rumors from people who have visited the area. 

If anyone reading this blog has stories or evidence of amphibians living at Drumheller, please send me an email. 

Idaho blue-eyed grass. 

Bitterroot. 

Twin butter cups, like eyes. 

Sun

The warmth of the sun lifted my spirits this afternoon;

the blue sky cleared my mind. 

It is the promise of a returning spring. 

The buds of trees ready to bloom. 

Little Falls

These photographs were taken last Friday at Little Falls, Washington.

Spring run-off feeds a torrent of water over the falls.

The old Little Falls Bridge.

When I stopped to take these pictures, two Canadian geese flew directly overhead and came to rest on this tree.

Serviceberry flowers bloom nearby.

Easter

My family dressed up on Easter Sunday and walked to the park for a family picture. The sun was shining and the temperature finally rose above 60 degrees. It was a beautiful day for remembering resurrection and new life.

Click on the picture for a larger image.

Spring

Signs of spring are appearing more slowly than usual. Just this morning, the Spokesman-Review reported that this has been one of the coldest Aprils in Spokane since the National Weather Service began keeping records more than 130 years ago. The temperature has yet to exceed 60 degrees.

The cold weather just never seems to end. The sun made a brief appearance this morning, but soon gave way to another round of snow flurries.

During my morning hike, a hawk perched atop an electrical tower, then flew away. In moments like this, I wish my camera had a better zoom.

The serviceberries are straining to bloom against this unseasonable cold.

April Snow

April showers bring May flowers, or so the saying goes. But what about snow showers in April? Do those count? Will the snow freeze the flowers instead?

During my morning hike today, the clouds dumped blizzard-like snow onto the countryside.

Nature is trying to stay green, despite the snow.

Here's a picture of the snow at a different shutter speed.

Spring

Spring break has proved somewhat less eventful than planned. We had originally hoped to make a trip to Ainsworth Hot Springs in British Columbia, but travel expenses would have been too much for our limited budget. Instead we stayed close to home and enjoyed the restful time away from normal responsibilities.

One day this week, I took a long overdue hike to the Little Spokane River and observed the spring flooding over the meadow.

Another day, Rhonda, Dakota, and I took a drive outside Cheney and happened upon a young moose with its hind leg tangled in a barbed wire fence. We called the folks at wildlife, but then the homeowner came outside and cut the wire. The poor moose lay in shock for some time, and then finally ran away to freedom.

Dakota and Mariah took a short trip to outer space and returned safely back to earth.

I can't remember the name of the place on I-90 that sells statues and over sized lawn ornaments. We stopped for a short visit, but the cold weather chased us away. The snow started blowing just a short while later.

Gargoyles and fairies...

March Snow

The girls walked to school under a bright winter sun, quite the contrast from the near blizzard conditions yesterday.





The weather created unexpected chaos yesterday. Just as everyone anticipated the arrival of spring, a freak winter blast dumped at least a half a foot of snow over the region. Snow in March is not unusual for Spokane, but normally it turns immediately to slush.

The snow disrupted my world as well.

Shortly after 9:00 in the morning, I drove my daughter to a dentist appointment. We could not cross Division Street because the weather had reached nearly white out conditions and the highway was choked with cars. Instead we drove south on Division and saw the cause of all the congestion. Two cars collided on the hill and blocked at least one lane of traffic. Emergency vehicles were just arriving and re-directing the flow of cars. I remember saying to Whitney, “I hope no one was hurt.” Only later did we learn that a local woman was killed.

At least 135 other accidents were reported by the end of the day.

We drove the long way around and finally arrived at the dentist office where my daughter got several fillings. After more than an hour of drilling under the influence of Novocain and nitrous oxide, poor little Whitney staggered out of the office.

And then the car battery died and we found ourselves stranded without a phone. With no one to call for help, Whitney and I walked home through the snow. The dentist told us the “happy gas” would no longer create any effect, but she still seemed a little unstable as we trudged over the snow and ice.

When we got home, we borrowed jumper cables from a neighbor and succeeded in re-starting the car.

Then this morning, the battery died again, and I ended up walking to school with the girls. The sun blazed with deceptive clarity in the frozen sky, but I still keep hope that spring is just around the corner.

Rain

The world is changing, winter to spring; snow gives up to rain.



By early afternoon, the clouds parted and allowed the sun to paint the landscape with deep, brilliant colors. Rhonda and I walked by the Spokane River and took in the promise of spring.

This time of year brings to mind a passage I read recently:

"Close your eyes now, and then open them and look outside. What you will see is love coming out of the trees, love coming out of the sky, love coming out of the light." - The Four Agreements, by Don Miguel Ruiz

In my finest moments of clarity, this is what I feel.



Looking upstream on the Spokanbe River...



In our mundane doings, Rhonda and I went to the Spokane campus of Washington State University to sign legal papers. WSU is hiring me on a temporary basis to provide educational consulting for the 2009 Ecuador Youth Leadership Exchange. Those who follow my blog know that I worked on this project last year, and I'm thankful to have a role again this year.

As we left the campus, I tried to take a somewhat persepctive shot of the university for my blog and inadvertently captured the figure of a skull in the snow. Can you see it? My first thought was that the winter is dying and a new season of my life is emerging. Any other interpretations?

Fire

2009Feb16-001, originally uploaded by sulustumoses.

Last night I dreamed of springtime.

In my dream, I cleared a trail to the mountains with a handheld show shovel. When I reached the summit, I built a fire and sang for the changing seasons. The warmth from the fire melted the snow and caused spring to appear.

2009Feb16-003, originally uploaded by sulustumoses.

In response to my dream, I hiked to the Little Spokane River for the first time in months, searching for signs of spring. The sound of songbirds gave the first evidence, followed by patches of clear ground under the melting snow, or a dry leaf holding to a branch as new leafbuds push forward.

2009Feb16-004, originally uploaded by sulustumoses.

2009Feb16-012, originally uploaded by sulustumoses.

2009Feb16-013, originally uploaded by sulustumoses.

Robin

2009Feb16-015, originally uploaded by sulustumoses.

This robin was by no means the first to appear this season, but he is certainly a welcome messenger for the return of warmth.

Ladybugs

2009Feb16-007, originally uploaded by sulustumoses.

2009Feb16-006, originally uploaded by sulustumoses.

2009Feb16-009, originally uploaded by sulustumoses.

In my search for spring, I found a small mound of dirt exposed by the melting snow under a juniper tree. There I saw hundreds of ladybugs tending the firstborn blades of grass. They still had not taken flight, so I watched and thanked them for announcing the change of seasons.