Nature
Spring

Blackthorn Winter

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Scraps of blackthorn blossom fleck my coat,
Another gust of hail, and down they float;
A fine spring this — the earth as cold as stone,
North-easterlies that cut you to the bone.

The primroses have withered, one by one;
The bluebells cower, praying for the sun;
Rumbling thunder stalks the streaming hills;
Sneaking frost has slain the daffodils.

My boots are caked in mud; the dog is, too.
Above a clump of ash, the sun breaks through,
A sudden glance of light on bud and bark,
My heart leaps up— the soul song of a lark!

Blackthorn winter: a period of cold weather [in England] with northeast winds at the time of the blackthorn’s flowering in early spring.  
— Shorter Oxford English Dictionary