The Great Awakening

do you see me 

standing stick straight 

between the coarse tree trunks

camouflaged in the grays

will you find me

peeking out from the

dormant meadow grasses

for over a year now

my world

muted

barren

and whisper thin

concealed me from deadly predators

I willed my heart and breathing to slow

to conserve energy 

for the great hibernation

at first the elders spoke of a

a two-month cold spell

but the great freeze dragged on for over a year

I began to question the permanency of

my isolation

when hope landed on a nearby branch

in the form of a blackbird

the messenger sang of the sun

rising higher in the sky

and the days growing longer

he pointed to teardrop buds sprouting from my digits

and promised warm suns would bring spring rains

restoring my complexion 

to apple green

it feels like forever

since I’ve seen a true blue sky

since the world was in full bloom 

since it was safe to emerge from the thicket

but the quickening pulse of my warming blood

is the truest sign yet

that the long winter solstice

is nearing

the end

(Photo taken on recent hike near Jug Bay (Patuxent River) Upper Marlboro, MD)