I Have a Dream........a Dream of Spring

Its the end of January! Today, is a teaser of Spring, but I will take it! Nothing like last year at this time, we were six foot under snow, power outages, school closures and wondering if there would be an end in sight to Winter madness. A larger percentage of people who live in the Gorge will comment how they are not missing the snow this year. I think many of us had enough last year to make up for a few years to come. I had to shoot a picture to compare our yard today from a year ago.....looks a little different!

Some people of course ask if this is Global Warming? Well, if there really was an Ice Age and the Earth was covered in a deep freeze a million years ago, then this would be considered warming. For right now, I can dream because it felt like Spring. No wind, temperature around 50 degrees, no rain, a few clouds and breaks of blue sky. This keeps up and it will be a record year for how early I have to mow my lawn. The rhodys have buds, the daffodils are peaking up through the dirt reaching for warmth, the primroses are blooming, giving us a dream of what is to come in months ahead.

It is of course, January, we still have February and could see snow and ice in March. Will Phil, the groundhog, tell us on Friday, Feb 2, Spring is around the corner, or this is all just a myth with 12 more weeks of cold?

After the long snowbound Winter we endured last year, houses are popping up for sale in the Gorge. Like the ten year cycles of weather, the economy follows its lead. Housing market is climbing in price, this Winter for those who do not know or understand the Gorge, it will bring in new comers. How long will they stay? That can be determined by the weather and those peoples strength to endure. We have the beauty, the majestic mountains on both sides of the vast Columbia River, hiking trails, out door adventures, wildlife, summer rafting or kayaking, fishing and so much more. We are in the Heart of the Gorge and have it all, but with that comes challenges. We faced the challenges last year with a severe winter, massive snow fall only to follow with summer forest fires. We are due to fall into the ten year cycle of easy living, mild temperatures and enjoyment of all around us.

The sun is setting and the storm is rolling in, Winter is still with us. Today, however, I dreamed it was Spring.