February: The Longest Month

There’s an old joke that February is the shortest month of the year because New Englanders couldn’t stand it to be one day longer. This year February has seemed particularly long–in the last week alone we’ve seen sub-zero temperatures, several light snowstorms, clear, sunny days, and a thunderstorm. But tomorrow the month finally comes to an end and we can welcome March and, perhaps, some early signs of spring.
Here on my small Maine island the deer are so desperate for food that they have devoured huge chunks of my holly bushes and I expect they are waiting ravenously for the first tulips to poke through the ground. That will be a while, however, as the snow drifts are still several feet high in the gardens. I can feel the mood around town lightening as the days continue to grow longer, the snowstorms grow lighter, and the sun shines more brightly. Today as I look out my office window, sunlight is breaking through the cloud cover and the sky is pale blue instead of gray. And on my early morning walk I heard a few birds chirping and actually spotted a robin. Spring is coming and my quiet island will awaken again.