is here and it tastes like rain The slight chill in the air sends spasms of delight down my spine during long walks through mud, gravel, and new grass Splintered sunlight throws shadows dancing and geese form their bold vee's overheard sailing through the stratosphere like feathered ships with trails of cosmic sparkle The sandpipers I watch as they scuttle about on spindly legs, making funny little tracks in the sand at the roadside Waves lap on the shore of a pond, ripples made by a clean wind blowing down from the ether A star burst sky hangs above dotted with gossamer wisps of vapor and the occasional falcon or hawk, swooping with the greatest intensity you could imagine, wings going down up down There is music in our veins this time of year; the dirt has a pulse of its own And as I squint out at the light-drenched scape I begin to grasp the sweetness of renewal, the infinitesimal bravery of that tiny flower pushing its way out of the earth