Dear Friends,

The first signs of spring are here. Trees are budding - cherry trees, red maple and dogwood. The dogwood that hangs over my creek is getting ready to  burst with  dazzling, white blooms. 

Early flowers open their faces to the sun. Crocus and yellow daffodils are among the first. 

Peeper frogs chirp at dusk. I don’t hear them where I live in North Carolina, but I used to hear them a lot in upstate New York. My neighbor then was an old-timer who said the peepers had to freeze 3 times before spring truly arrived.

The butterflies return.  The mourning cloak  butterflies here start floating around the yard.  They wait to nestle in the butterfly bushes when they bloom.

Finally, a sign of spring in North Carolina is the blue tail skink. This small lizard moves slowly when it first appears as though it’s groggy from a long nap. But the sun soon warms it and it becomes super fast, darting in and out of places to hide. Skink like to bask in the sun on rocks or on the floor of our back porch.

The blue tail skink is so interesting, he may make it into an Acorn and Button story.

​Anyway, those are some of my favorite signs of spring! What are yours?

​Dear Friends,
 
I live between two mountains, north and south. As the sun sets, it lights up the top of the northern mountain. Every day I walk the long driveway to the mailbox to get my mail. When I turn around and walk back to the house, the sunlit mountain is in front of me. The view often gives me a mixed feeling of comfort and longing. I’m grateful for that mountain and I’m grateful for the light too. But I’m also grateful for the longing… for something more… something worth searching out and believing in even if I don’t see or experience it now. 
 
That kind of believing is not hard for Acorn. Believing  in goodness and possibility is like breathing to him. He’s rarely rocked by difficult circumstances or things happening around him. He keeps it simple and hopeful, moment by moment.
 
I’m trying to be more like Acorn.

Dear Friends,

I’m sorry this newsletter arrives a little late this week. I’ve been busy with writing activities. First, let me thank those who have written book reviews! It’s so appreciated!

Secondly, we’ve had a bit of a mishap here. Acorn and Button have been begging to fly on the drone and I finally relented.

When the drone went down, my heart almost stopped! But things didn’t go as badly as feared. Acorn was untouched in the accident. Button suffered a slight scratch on his forehead but that can be buffed out. Unfortunately his needle was broken in half. No worries, that will be easily replaced. Soon after landing (?), they both wanted to rush home. Perhaps to recover from the shock or maybe to write about the event in their diaries? I’m not sure. We’ll see.