XII 



NATURE'S LAST NAP 



rt . j- LD Nature's sleep is 



y x " nearly over. Already 



she is beginning to turn 

 and stretch. She may 

 draw up the blanket of 

 snow again and take 

 another nap, but it will 

 not be a long one, nor 

 will it be deep. So, if we are to get our 

 last look at real winter, we must take it 

 now. And it is delightful, to one whose 

 eyes are open to the premonitory symptoms 

 of the awakening, to see how the plants 

 that grow in the beds of the little streams 

 will begin to show green before the month 

 is out. The twigs of the willows too will 

 redden, and the skunk-cabbage will push 

 out. But these are only symptoms of 

 the awakening and not the 



291 



awakening 



