Spring is in the air... but not yet anywhere else.

"a scent, such as never clings, to ought save happy, living things..." (from Rennaisance by Millay)

I popped my nose near the screen this morning, and a lovely smell was wafting around, a smell of things quietly awakening, not yet stirring, but considering, in their earthly beds, what it would be like to grow, and stretch graceful branches toward the endless blue above, arch delicate leaves to touch the canal, whisper to the neighborly birds so still and intent before flight. The plants are breathing, their sweet scent tells us that spring is near.

I wore my new sweater to school today. The students exclaimed when they saw it, it is a very festive striped sweater, red, green, yellow brown and white. I like to wear bright colors, to remind the students that there is a bright and happy world outside, and inside their hearts. The always appreciate it when I wear bright colors. I think that it helps them feel more excited about school, too. Colors have been proven to have emotional effects. If I wear bright colors, I hope that it will help them to associate English with fun and excitement, and help them to focus more in class.

Spring is finally here!!

Spring is finally here, and I'm sooooo glad. The cherry bloosoms are in full bloom. The mountains of Nishimera are full of flowering trees. Two weeks ago it snowed more than all year, though! I have been taking cuttings of all sorts of plants, and planting vegetables. I have cuttings of three different kinds of plum trees and planted some pumpkin, tomato and pepper seedlings yesterday. I have flowers and berries and spinach growing already.

Spring is on its way!

Yesterday it was pretty warm. Today too. As compared to the horrible chill before. The winter is passing, and its always shocking because its almost like it goes from being horribly cold to being very very warm in a matter of weeks. How is that!?!?!

Anyway, Jan and Marisol finally had their baby. The sight of her was a shock...Its so hard to explain. Like seeing my brother as a baby girl? Or seeing my blood that I had never seen before but knew was somewhere? Very strange feeling.
One of the great things about the past few weeks, too, is that for Valentine's Day, my grandma, Mama Nene, went to her friend Karen's house. Karen let her use her computer and camera, and Mama Nene was able to talk on Skype for the first time, and see the new baby, her great-granddaughter, Aisha. It was perhaps a huge jump, I hopefully imagine, from being totally isolated, to realizing that we are all still around, somewhere, and eager to see her. I thank goodness for internet video communications.

I have been working on my garden, which is an increasing assortment of pots. Most recently, I have been trying to sprout a variety of citrus seeds. Yuzu, Tangerine, Orange, and Kumquat(金柑). I also puchased my first large plant, a pineapple guava. I love tasting the flower petals, and the fruit is yummy.