Spicebush, home

The overnight rain turned to snow towards daybreak, and when I looked outside, there was a haze of white on the leaf litter and the kitchen porch railing. But it wouldn't last for long, and by mid-afternoon, the sun was out and it was hinting at almost-warm. While most of my day was spent tackling a spring-cleaning project in my overstuffed basement,  I did manage a walk break in the back woods where I wanted to check on something: the floral state of the Spicebush shrubs. These mini-trees are very common in the wetter parts of the woods and I've been noticing their fat, round buds for a couple of weeks now. In the last couple of days, they've opened, and though I haven't noticed them spicing up the ridge, it's just a matter of time before their subtle scent greets me at the door. This will happen when the weather returns to spring-like. However, as I was photographing the flowers, the sky darkened and it began to spit big pellets of graupel—soft hail. That was a sign of something winter-like in the forecast. Maybe it would pass.