Interregnum - May 14 2021

 

Interregnum

May 14 2021

 

The buds are still tightly closed,

hard glossy nubs

that have somehow over-wintered

through the dark and cold,

as if summer were certain

when we had our doubts.

 

And when they unfurl

the bugs will hit;

spring’s rite of passage,

when the air is filled

with single-minded blackflies,

fulfilling their short blinkered lives

by afflicting ours.

 

And then the usual succession

of mosquitoes

deer flies

and ankle biters.

 

But for now, the buds are biding their time,

and the sun is hot

and there’s the promise of May

and the land has finally dried

from the annual thaw,

puddles and mud

and clunky gumboots.

A brilliant interregnum

between the harshness of winter

and the season of bugs.

 

So we give thanks for our blessings,

2 weeks of good weather

and freedom from bites.

 

Outside, in T-shirt and shorts.

 

Or even naked, if we like;

slow moving creatures

with soft skin and warm blood,

for now undisturbed

in our northern paradise.

 

I was lamenting with my neighbour the imminent arrival of the first brood of blackflies. He reminded me that their appearance usually coincides with the opening of the buds.

I replied that with climate change, one never knows any more:  many of the natural cycles are out of sync; the timing needed for creatures to successfully mate and raise their young is often off these days. Pollination, as well.

Still, it seems as if things are on track this year. So we are still in that lovely interregnum. I noticed tonight that the buds are tightly closed. I hope they stay that way for a while!