Spring is slow in coming to Minnesota. Though the calendar has registered March 21st, snow still flies and winter garb is still being worn. People are resigned to it. There is really no more reluctance. We are shrugging our tense shoulders as we simply surrender to the cold and biting winds.We are doing this so we can be completely and joyfully surprised when the temperatures finally warm and the sun shines bright.

Yet even in these cold March days when the skies are grayer than gray, I was blessed to catch a glimpse of the surprise that is to come. High above in the dismal sky this week I caught sight of an enormous bird. At first I thought it was an eagle but then saw that its body was too thin, its wing span too wide. It seemed to almost camouflage itself in the wintry clouds. Its solo flight seemed lonely to me and I felt a melancholy tug at my heart. As it dipped lower in the sky and descended to a dead tree along the waters' edge, its identity became clear. A great blue heron!

Suddenly the mere sight of it lifted my spirits. Though the wind about me was cold and the skies above were colorless, a great blue heron was in sight. The surprise of spring could not be far behind. I said to several people, "I saw a heron today.", feeling the need to offer these words of hope,the gift of this vision.

Last night my husband and I were walking along the river and he spotted it first. We watched yet another heron slowly swoop down and land on a dock. It seemed to look around as if to ask: Where are the boats? Where are the people? Where is the spring?

Walking on, we carried those same questions. At least we are now asking them in the finest of company.