With the arrival of spring today, you’d think we’d be easing gently into the season with cool mornings, soft breezes, and the quiet promise of new life. Instead, we’ve been met with a stretch of unexpectedly brutal heat. The kind that makes you hesitate at the door with trays of fragile seedlings in your hands, wondering if it’s simply too much, too soon. The answer to that question is YES.
Our little starts are still so tiny and hopeful it feels almost cruel to set them out under a sun that already seems to demand midsummer strength. So for now, they wait—tucked safely where we can keep an eye on them, where they can grow just a little stronger before facing the elements.
Oliver, however, has no such patience and has already begun plotting.
This morning I caught him on quiet patrol, nose low and determined, carefully inspecting each tray as if conducting a formal review. From the red amaranth to the yarrow, nothing escaped his attention. With thirty-six varieties in play this season, I have a feeling we’re in for quite the challenge. Keeping Oliver out of the seedlings may become a full-time job, and one he intends to resist with great enthusiasm.
In the midst of all this early spring drama, there have been victories too. The new flagpole has finally been installed, replacing the one that didn’t survive our last round of fierce winds. This new version is built to endure, engineered to withstand gusts up to 125 miles per hour and anchored by three bags of ready-mix concrete. Short of a tornado, it’s here to stay, standing tall and steady against whatever the seasons may bring.
And Oliver? After a recent trip to the groomers, he is once again looking quite dignified. His heavy winter coat is gone, and you can almost see the relief in his step. Sleeker, lighter, and undoubtedly more comfortable, he’s ready for warmer days, though perhaps a bit too ready to involve himself in gardening decisions that aren’t his to make.
All around us, Winterpast is waking up.
The trees are beginning to stretch and stir, their branches softening with the first hints of green. There’s a quiet kind of magic in this transition reminding us that no matter how unpredictable the weather, no matter how mischievous the helpers, life continues its steady return.
And in moments like these, we are deeply grateful.
Grateful for this land, for its beauty and resilience. Grateful for the rhythm of the seasons, even when they surprise us. And yes, even grateful for Oliver and his sidekick the Wookie, our ever-watchful, ever-curious companions, who keeps life interesting in ways we never quite expect.
Spring is almost here. And at Winterpast, we’re ready… or at least, we’re doing our best to be.
