Spring Will Come

One of the things I like best about living in Florida is the "usually" warm winter. This year has certainly been an exception! Now I realize that most everywhere else has been freezing but we aren't used to that down here. This winter has been much colder and managed to freeze all the vines off my back fence. Normally a little freeze doesn't bother them too much - the top layer might turn brown but there is green underneath and the first sign of warm weather encourages new growth. This year, the damage was so deep that hubby had to cut back all the vines off the fence down to the main root ball. Our fence looks bald & naked like a really short buzz cut.

Still, there is something to say for the promise of new beginnings. The weather will soon be warming up and those vines will begin to reestablish themselves on the fence. It will be interesting to see what survives and how the new growth shapes itself. There are several different types of vines - jasmine, bleeding heart, passion vine, clematis - and over the last few years the passion vine has covered over pretty much everything. The bleeding heart has cowered at the base of the fence. The jasmine peeks through at the beginning of the bloom but quickly gives up the fight. The clematis has its own space on an arched bench but managed to find its way up into neighboring trees and along a side fence, trying to outrun the passion vine.

So now we have a more level playing field. Everyone has room to grow & thrive - if they can survive the cold weather & severe pruning. The similarities of the vines and the current state of the world is not lost here. This is a time for reinvention and is something that we can do with a little help from one another... and Spring will come.