Roof drip and winter-spring

Winter suffered its final defeat the other day. Granted, it hasn’t been much of a winter at all compared to a normal year, but it’s still very clear when spring – actual meteorological spring – is about to arrive. There’s a special kind of humid softness to the air, and the once-fluffy snow melts into a compact pile of ice granules, pock-marked by dripping water and dotted by pine needles and birch twigs that have been ripped from the trees in spring storms.

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I have no idea what this is about: is it an actual spring bud, or is it a dried bud from last year that’s been sort of mummified at the moment of birth?

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Under the trees, there are pools of melted water, plip-plopping with the sound of spring.

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We call it spring-winter, and here’s a small video about it. All the signs: the windiness, the crumbling snow, the drip-drip from trees and roofs, the crystal wetness. Nature slowly waking up. I think it’s really soothing.