The morning sun casts a long shadow from the spruce stand. Snow crunches underfoot, although under the stand itself the low sun has filtered through and softened the snow cover. These last few sunny days have been clear and cold. It feels more like late winter, but realistically that’s wishful thinking. The main defining quality of our early spring weather is its erratic nature.

I’m enjoying the brisk beauty even less because my body seems to be fighting off yet another virus which my partner brought home from her job in health care. Fortunately the baby has recovered quickly. One of the main selection pressures among “civilized” humans has been infectious disease. High population densities and extensive trading contacts have nurtured and spread infectious agents for a long time. A cold, wet spring is just not the danger it once was.