Perfect

On a day when Japan is still reeling from the enormous disasters that have hit it--and the aftershocks continuing to pummel it--I feel a bit odd talking about what a gorgeous day it is here in North Carolina. I'm going to do it anyway, though, for two reasons: good news sometimes make bad news easier to take, and, well, it is absolutely wonderful here.

Perfect, in fact.

When I walked up to get the mail, the temperature was 68 (Fahrenheit), the clear sky was glowing light blue, a slight breeze was rustling the leaves, birds were singing, and you could almost hear every tree and flower and blade of grass whispering, "Life, glorious life."

In this view up the driveway, the blossoming tree is betting that Spring is here. (As always, click on an image to see a larger version of it.)


Not to be outdone, the bushes shouted yellow greetings.


The pines and the sky joined in that they had always known Spring would not desert them.


Holden, the World's Greatest Dog, even deigned to pose. His questions: Is it time for a walk, maybe a game of fetch? Can a brother get a biscuit?


Even Cone Man donned a garland to greet the season.


We'll have more cold days, more gray skies, more moments when we wonder if winter will ever end, but today we have all this, and with it we gain the bone-deep certainty that Spring will come.

It's not yet time for this song's subject, but soon enough it will be, and that is a perfect, glorious, wonderful thing.