The Ugly Side of Spring

I am sick of Winter. I am tired of wind. I am tired of rain. I want it to be warm. I long for flip flop weather. As the days have been warming ever so slightly I've walked a little more slowly to the car, dawdled while getting the mail or taking out the trash. I've noticed some things I wouldn't take the time to see if it were cold. The hyacinths are poking their way through the mulch. Snowdrops have bloomed in the back yard. The spring birds have joined the winter birds and are singing louder.

While walking down the driveway to the mailbox today I noticed a naked snail slowly making its way. No. It was not a slug. It was a light brown snail, no shell. I do not usually fear bugs and creepy crawly things and I took the sighting as a positive move in the warm direction. It was pretty too though now that I really think about it. It was a very light brown and speckled with white with delicate antennae searching to and fro. I wondered where it was going and how it knew where to go. It made me happy to see yet another sign of the return of life that comes this time of year.

I didn't give it too much more thought as I headed to the street careful not to step in the bit of mud in front of the mailbox. Mud. There's a part of spring I could do without. I know, I know "April showers,...." blah, blah, blah. Of course I know rain is a good thing (country songs tell me that) but if only we could have less at once. Whenever there's a deluge a large mass of silt and mud is deposited at the bottom of the driveway. This debris settles into the treads of the kids' bike tires and shoes and inevitably shows up on the living room floor.

And then there's the walk to school. The path we take is through a yard, over a foot bridge and through a grassy plot. The path is muddy on a good day. After a rain it's down right Woodstock material. Slippery slopes and squishy puddles make a mess of shoes and hems along the way. You'd think the remaining walk along the street would work the mud out of the shoe treads but that doesn't happen. And again, more mud makes it's way inside no matter how many times I say, "Wipe your feet. Take off your shoes."

They do take off their shoes after wiping their feet but there's still mud there. Mud that will dry overnight. Mud that becomes a fine dirt that will fall from the shoe the next morning as the final step of the morning rush commences: putting on the shoes. For some reason it seems that it rains most when the house has just been cleaned and the shoes are hardest to put on the day after a muddy walk. Feet must be pounded into the shoes to get them on just right shaking that now dried mud into a pile on the freshly mopped floor.

The cats play a part in the ugliness of spring too. Monday was a mild day. The cats who usually spend their winter days curled up somewhere warm inside were itching to get outside. I saw Tiger doing what I thought was frolicking on the deck. Later as I opened the back door to check the temperature I was greeted by a sight I haven't seen since fall. Feathers. Lots of them sprinkled here and there and all over the welcome mat. Not so welcoming if you ask me. I realized now the frolicking I'd seen earlier wasn't a cat's dance to welcome the return of spring. Instead it was pouncing and chasing. Poor bird.

Not to be outdone was Jerry on the front porch. I found him later that afternoon licking his chops, a stray gray feather on his head. And more feathers by the door, under the chair and table. And right by the welcome mat a bird wing and a blood stain sat as a warning to other birds who might come calling. I reached for the broom cursing under my breath as tiny feathers escaped my sweeping and drifted under the storm door, into the house, onto the freshly mopped floor. Ugh. Gross.

Like all things in life, good comes with bad. So I guess if I have to suffer through mud and dead bird clean-up to get to wear my flip flops that is just the way it will have to be. Maybe I should instead embrace the ugliness. Rejoice that this is all I have to worry about today. My house is still standing. My family is safe. I'm not picking through rubble in search of survivors. I haven't lost everything I own. I'm not worried about radiation levels. Next time it rains I think we'll all put on our rain boots and go puddle jumping. Splash right in the biggest mud puddle we can find. Feel blessed that Mother Nature has chosen to be kind to us with a rain storm that will renew life rather than a calamity to rob us of everything. Marvel at the wonder of trees turning green. Listen to the sound of a giggle in the rain. Smell the freshness of the air after a storm. Remember all that we have and how precious it all is. Thankful for the ugliness of Spring.