March 28

This morning the lake is a series of steel gray, sparkling ripples. The geese are gone or better yet have yet to arrive for their morning rounds. Only the pair of mallard ducks hang out on the shore. I saw a fat bright red cardinal in the French pussy willow tree. His call fills the strangely empty air. It's cold. The wind blows strong and hard, stirring up more ripples. Bare tree branches shake and clank. The sky is pure white with a few puffy grey clouds and the sun is a lemon yellow streaming weakly through. The weather man is calling for rain and snow starting this afternoon. Perhaps the geese will stay away, hunkered down in their fields where the ground is warm.