Come, Leo, let's enjoy the spring-like thaw

And take a walk around our neighborhood.

We'll see if trees withstood this winter's wrath,

Its winds so raw that brittle branches cracked.

Will green-leafed sprigs appear on limbs with flaws,

Or sprout from crevices in fissured wood?

What loss should scented florets not burst forth,

If blooms emerging wither and withdraw.

Although still hampered by slow-melting snow,

Impatient daffodils rise everywhere.

Green shoots peep up and wriggle toward the sun

While clustered peonies grow much too fast.

Do cloudless skies and air this warm deceive?

Please say that Spring’s begun, not sleeping still.