Spring Has Finally Arrived!!!!

In the summer of 1982, Rick and I, along with two 4 year olds and a dog named Cocoa, traveled from Northern Illinois to West Tennessee to visit his family. The route we took traveled through the western edge of Kentucky and I remember looking around at the dense foliage and thinking that it was the greenest place I’d ever seen. And I do mean GREEN!

Now, 30 plus years later, I am living in Northern Minnesota and can honestly say this is the whitest place I have ever seen. And I do mean WHITE!

The ground was constantly covered with a thick white blanket, every tree wore a white coat and every rook had a layer of white frosting with beautiful long ice cycles hanging from the edges.  The grey/white skies promised to refill the places where we’d pushed the blanket back in order to navigate safely from place to place, even if it was just to the mailbox and back. The picture above was taken with my cell phone just a few weeks ago...in April. 

One month after the actually first day of Spring, Winter has finally loosened her grip on us and is slowly receding, revealing brown wet patches of earth and grass struggling to turn green again. The trees have been trying to leaf out for weeks and on many you can see the yellow and red of new growth waiting to burst loose with life.

There are several squirrels that spend their days scampering from tree to tree, one seems to have an infinity for my favorite maple in the yard, the same one pictured in an earlier post. I can see the tree from my upstairs office window and enjoy the show the squirrels put on for me in the morning. It’s just one of those things that make me smile. If you look closely you will see one of my delightful friends on the top board stretched across the 2 cedar trees. 

The little birds have been back for a couple weeks now but this morning I was delighted to see another telltale sign of spring in my yard – Robins -- bunches of them. It was a joy to watch them dance across the yard in pursuit of a meal.

Out the big bay window at the back of the 

house is the most obvious sign of spring, 

a river of water from the melt off heading for 

lower ground. At the end of the flow is the 

inlet to the stream that flows through our

 property and under the road as it heads 

for the St. Louis River a couple miles away. 

God Is So Good!!!!!

I must apologize for not posting anything for such a long time. Ever since my trip I have been in a weird place, still trying to find myself in this new place I now call home. Also, I've been struggling with the fact that it is April, Spring time; things should be turning green and warming up but winter is not done yet. In the last 2 days we've gotten almost 6 inches of snow. Mother Nature must not have gotten that memo. I keep telling myself it will melt eventually.  In the meantime....

I want to share with you what happened on my journey to visit with my mom and aunt in Boise, Idaho.  I had prayed for protection for the plane before I ever got on it so I was relieved when the captain came on the loud speaker to inform us that we would be delayed for about 40 minutes to fix a problem with the hydraulics that lower the wheels.

I was one of the first to board so was able to stow my carry on above my seat. I was assigned an aisle seat, which I prefer, easier to get up and down and I don’t mind letting seat mates out. I was joined a short time later by a couple on their way to Hawaii. They love being there but hate the long flights it takes to get there. I suggested next time they plan a cruise. The trip was a pleasant one, we chatted some and each spent time in our own pursuits, sleeping or reading.

When we landed in Phoenix we were behind by 40 minutes because of the hydraulic problem so I was worried about getting to the next gate on time. When I entered the terminal I looked around to find which direction to go for my next gate. How pleasant to find that it was right next to the gate I’d just came through, and, to make it even sweeter, that plane was delayed as well because the crew to fly it had not arrived yet; the plane they were on was late as well. 

On this flight I was assigned to a center seat, which I was not looking forward to, and I was one of the last groups called to board so I was concerned about stowing my carry on near me. Well, imagine my surprise to find my assigned row and the above cargo area empty. I stowed my bag and took my seat and waited, there were still people getting on the plane. I smiled with gratitude as the cabin door was closed and the captain announced our departure. I had the whole row to myself. How awesome is that? Thank you God!!!! 

This plane is the the first plane I traveled on during my trip home. I have never been in a plane this small before so it was very different. It had double seats on each side so sitting in the middle was not an issue and my carry on would not fit in the cargo area so it had to be stowed in the baggage compartment. Thankfully, they did not charge me extra. I was seated with a lovely little lady who was on her way to visit family in Montana. Here is the crazy part. She and I were both headed east, so where did this plane take us? To Seattle! 

That is the biggest airport I have ever been in. After arriving I went in search of my next gate right away. I deplaned at gate D, my next flight took off from gate N. I had to go down 2 flights of stairs to a basement level and get on a train that took me across the airport, where I went back up 2 flights of stairs to the N terminal and walked all the way around until I found N8. Thankfully I had almost an hour to wait so I called home & my mom, letting them know I was safe. Then I got a cup of coffee and sat back to people watch while I waited for my flight. I was so happy to see that my next plane was much, much bigger. 

I had a middle seat again and my seat mates were not really interested in conversation. The young lady in the window seat pulled her hood up and dozed, the young lady in the aisle seat was buried in her book before we even took off, so I did the same. 

To end this day long trip, I took a shuttle from the Minneapolis airport to a park and ride outside of Cloquet, Minnesota. Rick was there waiting for me and an hour later I was back home being loved to pieces by my Betty Boop.