Spring Comes to the Hill

I don't care what the calendar says, and the thermometer is a liar too. It's spring, darn it.Last night we started Daylight Savings Time, and according to my internal light requirements, that means that spring is here!
Yesterday was typical early spring in my part of the world. It followed several days of rain and cool temperatures. The soil is saturated, and there is mud everywhere. That's been going on for a while, actually, and hindered our progress during the move a couple of weeks ago.
The day started out misty and overcast, but by afternoon it was a gorgeous and balmy forty-something degrees. As it got to be later in the afternoon, the wind started kicking up, and I watched out the office window as the hill was enshrouded in rushing, wispy clouds. So I went out onto the back deck to put the wicker furniture in some defensive arrangement. Standing on the deck is my favorite place to watch a storm roll in. This one was fronted by magnificent swirls of pink, yellow, and pale green heavy clouds. They were followed by an enormous black cloud with an edge as sharp as a knife. This was no ordinary storm.

Looking down into the field, I saw my sister and her husband inspecting some plantings. From my vantage point, I could also see where the heavy clouds were putting down rain - and it was going to hit soon. Yelling for them to get inside, my voice was lost to the wind. So instead of saving them, I got to watch them get caught in the downpour and scamper (a word that has new meaning after the age of 50 when running in heavy mud) down the steep bank to the locked back door, and then run further to find an open door. Ah... the joys of a great view!
About that time, the furniture on the deck started flying around and landed in a tangled heap against the far railing. One chair broke loose and took the stairs. I'd prefer not to tell you what happened to my garbage. We'll just say this... it was heavy and it landed in mud. Oh, and I might as well add that I've noticed that my daughter has a well developed knack for being away from home at times like that. Lucky thing there's lots of soap around here.
We got well over an inch of rain in the next hour. Some areas got up to 2". The winds howled and the house groaned. I fell asleep to knocking, banging, clanking and gusts. This morning is bright and sunny. Eventually I'll turn on the news to see where there are trees and power lines down. Last night's news told of trees on houses, trucks being pushed around and power outages. I'll wander out and see if we lost any shingles or siding.But no matter what else happens, spring is here.
It has to be. I turned my clock ahead, so that means it's spring.