uncurling a spring…

I’m kind of curmudgeonly about spring, I admit it. I get hunkered down into the Minnesota winters, snug in my bunker of books and schoolwork, writing and dreaming — when the first few days of sunny, warm weather hit, I feel dazzled, blinded. I curl in like a hibernating thing, not ready. Not ready.

I don’t know what to wear anymore, and my body feels uncomfortable outside of the usual layers. My legs are not ready for spring wind ruffling up my skirt. They are used to fleece-lined leggings and tall, black boots — my winter armor. This picture I snapped this morning through the boards of my back deck reminds me of how I need to get used to spring slowly, one peek at a time. Four soft blue eggs, gently cradled in the nest. Robin’s egg blue. It’s this perfect spring moment, and it helps me uncurl, look around. I hope the mother bird will be patient with our comings-and-goings, but already Avery has played kickball against the lattice and gone stomping up the stairs on a mission to tattle on his older brother, so we’ll see. After an evening of the four of us playing catch in the backyard, I filmed a the bright red cardinal who often perches on our front porch railing and sings to me while I write in the early weeks of summer. There’s another little flex, uncurling of my spring.

This image of me curling and uncurling has me thinking of two other things that have been going on this weekend. One is the yearly professional growth plan that is due this week, a curling in to reflect on my year as a teacher. This year was the first year in my new position doing reading intervention full time in the junior academy, and all I can think of as I look back at my year is how much I want to do differently next year. I’ve learned so much, and I am really going to miss the students I’ve worked with this year. And my homebase, which will be graduating this year after being (mostly) with me for three years. Time keeps rolling along, and my former students become this giant net spreading out and away, occasionally catching me off guard in public by how mature and capable they look, adults in the making.

Of course there’s a much more literal connection to a curled-up hibernating creature, and that’s the fact that my family is getting a hedgehog baby in two weeks, and she’s SO CUTE. Av even learned how to use the sewing machine last week when he was home sick, and he made a little pillow and sleeping bag for her to snuggle in. Presenting Baby Hawthorne the Hedgie — isn’t she adorable?!?

 

So. Happy spring from someone who is finally starting to put her quills down about the change of seasons. I may even step out of the black boots and leggings into my fancy composition notebook shoes and…no…I’m keeping the leggings for a little while longer! (It was 47 degrees yesterday, after all!)