Our Feet Are In Winter, Our Heads Are In Spring
By Cabot Orton, Proprietor
Mud season in Vermont. Next to fiery Fall, mud season is Vermont’s most famous time of year. Famous, that is, for muddy footprints being tracked into the house, cars encrusted with salt and dirt, and sudden snow squalls. It seems like a gray, dull time of year.
Dust Mops reach Way Up High
But look closer, and you will see that mud season is an exciting time. Spring is eager to arrive but Winter isn’t ready to leave, and the two battle back and forth across the landscape. A snowstorm might dump 10-inches of snow on the fields; two days later a warm, wet wind springs up, whisking away the snow and revealing new green grass. The trees are bare—or are they? No, each one is studded with tiny buds of fresh green. Fluffy white clouds cast giant shifting shadows across the hills.
For Vermonters, the blustery, ever-changing weather provides the spur to change things up around the house. On the first warm day we throw all the windows open to let in the spring air. We stuff the bulky winter clothes back in the cedar chest and pull the spring clothes out. We change our sheets from flannel to percale, but we don’t put that quilted comforter away—there are still some chilly nights ahead. And we give the place the most thorough vacuuming, dusting and polishing it gets all year. We finally get our paperwork organized.
Outside, it’s a joy to take on a few yard chores. It’s time sweep out the car barn, pick up bark and sticks from the front lawn, and repair that sagging gate. The gravel driveway needs raking. We still need our mud boots and long underwear, but we go without jackets to enjoy the cool air. If we get a little chilly, there’s a bowl of hot soup and maybe some raisin biscuits waiting inside.
Wherever you live, we hope you are enjoying the lively changing of the seasons, and making each day your own.
