oh, Joni...

Oh, Joni.

She gets it so right.

Especially about stuff that is so wrong.

Here are the lyrics to this song 'Bad Dreams' from her Shine album.

The piano pulls at me. 

Gorgeous. 

True.

Recently I read in the paper that this beautiful region here 

has had many milder and milder winters...

enough so that we have officially enterred a new growing-zone.

Some gardeners might be thrilled to be able to grow or hardy over new plants,

but I... 

 I am worried.

  

I hear some trees are starting to bud downtown, flower bulbs and garlic popping up

from beneath the earth where they should still be resting in dormancy.

And somehow we are all guilty at times

 of not noticing these things --

so clouded is our vision with the circumstances of our own lives,

so busy are we at adapting to this changing world,

the world we are causing to change,

to suit ourselves. 

Living things,

natural cycles that have existed for longer than we can imagine,

are changing in ways they have not ever.

  

The roots of everything are confused.

We people included.

All I know is that

33 years ago

when I was born this very month, there were feet of snow.  

The temperature was below zero. 

Bulbs and buds

never would have dreamed

of coming up,

even in the warmest part of February.