WInter's Grip

THis has been a  very s trange spring so far....   the  forsythia  has     forced itself to open , yet this is a  very pale version of its usual   golden    springy    allure...

    The daffodils   have  spent most of their   beautiful blooms  hanging   down   trying   very hard to     keep their   life force  pumping    during   temps that  hug the  freezing  mark more days a week than not...

   The perrenial  hyacinths  seem  to   never mind  about  the   cold,  cold days,   

  but the pansies  seem to be   gathering  in,   instead of  spreading  forth their   beauty!

Meanwhile ,   dark clouds  continue to gather   overhead,  blocking out the sun's warmth...

til finally, once again, today the skies  darkened and   snow   blew in   bringing  another  4 inches of   snow   to blanket the   earth...

The new life  and renewal of spring  cant seem to break through this barrier of   winter's   freeze....