Moving forward, but slowly.... very slowly

 While much of America is ‘getting back to normal’ and getting out and about because the pandemic is ‘over,’ I am still much more comfortable staying in my shell a bit longer. Because the pandemic is, of course, NOT over! Even though many, including myself, are now vaccinated, many more are not. And, until the number of cases and deaths stops climbing, the virus is still here, changing and growing stronger. I also confess that I did not find the isolation as difficult as I thought it would be. I believe doing without things and activities and demands that I had believed to be important has been good for me. It has taught me that there is more that I don’t need than I realized, and I do not miss those things and demands at all.

I continue to stay in my smaller orbit, working in my studio, seeing a few vaccinated friends outside, and still wearing a mask when I go to the grocery store. This will all be over someday, but, surprisingly, I find I am not in a rush. As an introvert, my little woven web has been comfortable enough, and I find that I am more comfortable in it that I am in the larger, much more complex 'out there' filled with so many others who are not as careful as I have been.

Some sketches to celebrate Spring!

My sketchbook, and the western Colorado weather, is saying it is Spring! I suspect it will be a short-lived spring, jumping much too quickly into summer, as it is already 80+* here this Easter weekend, the first weekend of April. My daffodils are already finished blooming and have been removed from the bulb bed. The tulips are beginning to join the hyacinths in replacing them.

Resurrection Sunday is tomorrow. When my sons were young, it was common for it to snow on Easter morning, making the bunny have to hide eggs and treats indoors. This year, it is supposed to be 84 degrees tomorrow, causing concern that the chocolate eggs the bunny hides might melt before being found!

This morning (Saturday) I am working in my garden, planting things that I'd normally wait several more weeks to plant. But the forecast for the future is encouraging me to join my neighbors and take the risk. Our apricot tree is in full bloom, so a late freeze would see us without any fruit (like last summer.) However, we are in what has been determined to be 'Extreme Drought' conditions, with high temperatures, no moisture to speak of all winter, and the fire season a fear ahead for us all.

I'll not worry about those things today, though. I am thinking of blooming flowers; the buds on my lilac bushes are huge, and my roses already have buds, as well. I'm putting some summer bulbs in today, as a pair of doves make their fragile nest nearby, with Poe and Ringo keeping close eyes on them through the open screen door. It is Spring. We are totally vaccinated. He is Risen. Things indeed that need to be celebrated!