Dwarf Iris in snow, Home

Last night, the forecast for the first full day of spring included a lurid "Winter Storm Warning" and there was a definite possibility that we'd be waking up to more than half-a-foot of snow whipped by blizzard-quality winds. But while I had high hopes of trekking the woods on snowshoes or zipping along on cross-country skis, I awoke to nothing more than a couple of inches of fast-fading slush. The skis and snowshoes stayed packed, and all I needed to walk was a pair of waterproof winter-weight boots. A hike around the house yielded plenty of signs of garden flowers insulted by the weather, but none were damaged in any real way—beyond, if flowers can feel this emotion, being disheartened. Still, the blooms took things in stride, and this clump of Dwarf Iris even got a measure of revenge by rising above it all—and carrying on with floral business as usual.