Spring is slow to come to Eastern Canada this year.  It has been cold and extremely wet all through April and May was not looking much better until today when a weak sun actually cast some shadows.  We even ate lunch outside with a few strategic returns for socks and sweaters during the meal.  Last time I promised you pictures of the little trout lilies if they ever opened under sun and here is proof that clouds did actually part today.  I also found another treasure; a red trillium.  I only knew white ones but this beauty bloomed under a big tree and there are quite a few other buds nearby.

What strikes me is how these beautiful creatures persist and even thrive even while nights are registering below zero temperatures.  Every morning I notice that the pan of water we have out for birds (the lake fifty feet away might be too much of a struggle for them) is topped with a fairly thick skim of ice.  How then, do these wonderful flowers manage to bloom?  The dark cold night lasts many hours.  I don’t think I would like to stay out unprotected and yet these delicate flowers set out their beauty without worrying about the weather forecast.  Miraculous!

The many birds are wonderful too.  A pair of barn swallows have decided to nest in the shed where the lawn mower is stored and now we have to leave it open so that the parents can go in and out.  Yellow and red finches and nuthatches as well as a pair of mourning doves are constantly feeding at the feeder hung high in an old tree.  I saw a beautiful robin this morning.  His breast was a lovely red and he had that typical fearlessness around people.  Joe noticed that a pair had chosen a hole in one of the trees and he thought they should have a bit of shelter from rain so he installed a sort of wooden overhang .  He even strategically placed some hay for nesting materials on top.  Our birds are spoiled.

The truth is that we are spoiled.  This constant unfolding of a late Spring brings with it a wonder at the silence, the slow growth of favorite saplings and the company of birds going about their important business. Another blessing is that black fly season seems to be delayed.  However, this wonder is to come I am sure.