An absolutely, positively sure sign of Spring

Mr. Pepper, meet Ms. Tomato

Outside, there's snow on the ground. The pond behind the house is still frozen over. No sign anywhere of crocus or daffodil.

But there are fewer birds at the feeders; they're finding sustenance somewhere else. Our two greedy squirrels (we can tell them apart because one has lost most of its tail) are elsewhere these days. They were smart and agile enough to have found their way around the baffles hung on the bird feeders, but somewhere they've found even easier pickings.

And inside! Not only do we have the occasional housefly languidly walking up the window, or buzzing angrily around the lamp, but the sunroom is full of seedlings that prove the truth of Hal Borland's words: "No winter lasts forever; no spring skips its turn."

This year my wife has found a use for all those newspapers that otherwise pile up until recycling day: even before I've finished reading them, the pages are artfully folded into small seedling pots, just right for a pepper or tomato seed, a bean, or even a flower or two. No cracks here about the newspaper's rightful place under the puppy we don't have.

So take heart. No need to wait for next Friday's vernal equinox, or Easter's arrival on Sunday. Spring is already here, bright green and bursting with promise. It's on our windowsills, and on the moving spotlight of sunshine on the floor; tiny leaves on spindly stalks reaching for the sun from hundreds of soggy, folded newspaper, plant pots. One leaf today, two tomorrow, three and more the next.

As the great philosopher, Robin Williams, noted: "Spring is nature's way of saying, 'Let's party!' "

(Meanwhile, keep in mind that the deadline for ordering Neighborhood Watch's flowering baskets is April 18. And mark your calendar for the annual (and huge!) Potpourri Garden Club plant sale on May 31 at Sam's Club.)