Snow and ice mounds are still among the gardens and the trees seem late with their buds. Spring seems to be taking an eternity to arrive, yet the spring time garden clean up is underway and I am prepping for a new coop for the girls. The chickens too seem happy that spring has finally teased us with a bright sunny day.

It doesn’t take much to realize that chickens don’t miss a beat.  They notice everything. They notice the geese migrating home, honking through the sky, as they return north. They notice fresh green blades of grass growing from the brown and they discovered that a sorrel plant survived winter in the vegetable garden.  But sometimes it’s the smaller things that they see that surprise me the most.

They see the tiny little gnat that somehow survived winter. They fling through their feed to find the perfect morsel to eat. They scour the oyster shells. Somehow, one just seems more delicious than the others. They find the smallest little bug climbing over the wet logs. They walk with the beaks to the ground, looking, seeking, and discovering tasty tidbits.

Although spring sure feels late, I too tried to notice signs of spring. Surely there had to be some, even if they were subtle. And sure enough, I found them. The daffodils and the hyacinths are just beginning to awaken from their slumber. The wild birds are singing songs of spring. The air smells crisp and clean and charged with energy. The feed store is peeping with chicks. The blueberry bushes have buds. The ground is damp and wet and my boots sink into the thawing earth.

Sometimes, it’s the little things that help carry us over the bigger humps; humps like this past winter.

Photo Credit: Tilly’s Nest