IS IT WINTER? 87 
the sun ! — and who can believe In winter, seeing the 
alders in bloom ! Besides, the birds, one might say, 
are also in bloom. You thought they sang all winter, 
but when you hear them now — well, you need no 
further assurance that the winter is over and gone. 
Yes, the winter is behind you, and you suddenly 
realize that you have spent nearly all of it out of 
doors, and, although a Northerner and a skeptic, 
you begin to believe in the sun. 
