Like heart-longings

Ah! it is not for you to open the bud into a blossom.
He who can open the bud does it so simply.
He gives it a glance, and the life-sap stirs through its veins.
At his breath the flower spreads its wings and flutters in the wind.
Colours flush out like heart-longings,
The perfume betrays a sweet secret.
He who can open the bud does it so simply.
Fruit-Gathering, Rabindranath Tagore

Spring has sprung!

(The basilica down the street.)

I have been wanting to make the proclamation but I was too scared I would jinx it. Here goes nothing...

Spring has sprung!

The air is warmer and the streets are almost completely free of snow! Please let this be the beginning of a transformation to a warmer time. A time of blossoms and green grass and bare arms. I loved the snow storms, but their time has passed. Oh, how this winter has made me long for spring.