March Winter

It is March 10. It snowed, but it's not the snow that gets to me. It's the relentless cold. It was actually above freezing when I went to work this morning, and I was surprised and kind of pleased by it. But tonight it will be below zero, or 6 above with a wind chill that makes it 16-30 below. It is March 10.

And there's the anxiety and frenzy of impending winter storms. Will they close school? Will we get to go home? Should we cancel evening plans? This started yesterday, when the predictions ranged from 3-6 inches of snow to 8-12 inches of snow for our area. But yes, 100% chance of snow, falling temperatures and wind.

And it's not the snow that bothers me. It's that we have had barely three days of thaw since December. And by thaw I mean nothing above 40 degrees. We need a break. Add that to the weekend Spring Forward plunging us back into waking up in darkness, when at least that was ground we'd gained in recent weeks, and well, you have a Minnesota March.

It is very quiet here-- after work I lay in bed watching the snow coming down-- or more accurately coming across because of the wind-- and there was literally not a sound to be heard anywhere. Every once in awhile a gust of wind. I think most people don't experience this kind of silence. It's like a film without a soundtrack.

I am looking forward, though, to the season of frogs, when that comes. Then we will open the windows and the whole world will be alive with croaking. We'll feel the presence of the garden beds and the unfrozen ground.

Last night I was awakened three times, from the total silence of the room, by coyotes.