Gifts From The Forest

It's this time of year, when everything looks damp and dreary and somewhat lifeless, that I become aware of the tendency towards wishing time away. 

 It's easy, with Spring just a stone's throw away to wish it were already here - to wish for birdsong and blossoms and green grass beneath a sunny sky.  This is the time of year when I must dig deep into my stores of patience - when I must search for that inspiration  hidden behind layers of brown and gray - when I must remember that there is a time for every season.

Yesterday afternoon, with the possibility of rain looming, we headed to the woods for a visit.  I was hoping we might spy some of our local deer, or maybe even a sleepy bear waking up from his hibernation (I know, it's a little early, but a girl can dream!).

Just as the dogs needed the adventure of a nose-down run in the forest, I needed some inspiration from Mother Nature.  

I always find that a dose of the forest is good for whatever ails me.  And yesterday, I was feeling a little lack-luster.

As we entered the forest, I caught a glimpse of something in my periphery, just off the path.

Snow drops!  This is the first I have seen them in our Hundred Acre Wood.  Years ago, I found them in the woods near the house - but never here in our big woods.  "Thank you," I whispered under my breath, "I needed that!"

We continued on our way chatting about how the forest is slowly turning over - from a hemlock forest to one of beech and birch and oak... from softwood to hardwood.  You can't help but notice all of the work being done by woodpeckers.  Between the fungi and the woodpeckers, the dying hemlocks are quite efficiently being returned to the forest floor. 

I wondered about those woodpeckers as they rat-a-tat-tat on the tree trunks.  You'd think they would get concussions from all of that hammering with their beaks.  For the longest time, scientists thought that woodpeckers had some form of shock absorbing structure in their heads.  This theory has recently been debunked.  It is thought that the only reason they don't get brain injuries is due to the small size of their brains, thus raising the threshold for concussive injuries.  It always amazes me just how perfectly intelligent nature is.

As we were leaving the woods, I spied an unusual color in the leaves several yards away from us.  At this time of year, I am always hopeful of finding antler sheds in the woods.  This, however (though sad) was even better than a couple of antlers.  This was the entire skull with antlers attached (the rest of the skeleton lay just inches away.  Perfectly cleaned by scavengers, insects, bacteria, and weather, it was a perfect specimen.

I carried it home and gave it a good anti-bacterial scrubbing then Hubbs hung it on the wall over this print of a picture painted by a local artist.

Perfect... especially for this sitting room located in the loft of our log cabin home.

While the rain drizzled outside, I finished my heavyweight shawl that I started this weekend.

Goodbye February.  You were kind to us this year - but I'm still not sad to send you on your way!