February 2005

2 February 2005, Groundhog Day

Leaving the darkness of deep winter, February offers its sweet seduction.

Mornings are clothed in deep fog and the crisp temperatures remind us that it is still winter…but then the fog dissolves and the fresh rays of the sun stir the soul. On these clear February days, the sun seems empowered by its steady movement north, and its warmth entices those so inclined to proclaim their desires. The earliest songsters, Melospiza melodia (song sparrows to most of us) have moved from short snippets of verse to almost full song. Robins, still in their winter foraging flocks, try a few tentative notes of their courtship song. By month’s end they will be the dominant sound of the morning chorus.

Thoughts of spring, thoughts of love--but we know this is all seduction. It is February after all. The warm, bright afternoons of today will give way to cold, dark days tomorrow. Still, we are caught up in the promise. We see that February’s darkness is different. Even on the rainiest days, we spy crocus on the ground hinting of the color soon to be revealed. We look up and see the bulging tips of bare branches and we know more flowers are at the ready. It’s a wonderful time to hope, to feel, to experience, to be taken in. It is February.