Geese have been returning to the North Country all evening and into the night, adding their songs to the pleasure of stargazing and warmer temperatures tonight. I remember sitting in the very same spot early last December, snow already on the ground and winter having arrived, watching the last of the geese heading south and away to warmer places. Their cries, to me, sounded anxious and full of exhortations to keep going: flee, flee quickly!

Tonight, as they return, their cries sound joyful: here we are, we’re back! Up the valley, over the farm, and into the hills beyond; harbingers of spring and the greening of the earth.

Their joyful cries, unfamiliar after so many winter months, caused Bowie consternation. Friend or foe? Better to keep watch and send the customary warning: keep out, this farm is watched over by me: bark, chase, bark some more, growl for further effect. I sip wine and sink into my Adirondack chair, hearing only the geese and melting snow.