March 07, 2006 01:27 AM EST
(Updated: March 07, 2006 04:44 PM EST)
tonight, while getting lillie to sleep, i heard the most wonderful noises. deep thumps, echoing through the open spaces of the lake and sky, bouncing off the stark trees lining the shore.
i've heard them before, always near the end of winter. it is a harbinger of spring, and gladly welcomed.
the ice is still at least a foot thick, has snow on top, and winter fishermen still ply their trade on it daily.
but i have now heard that change is afoot. if you listen, you might hear it.
thus speaks the ice - deeply resonant, groaning its release of winter with sublime abandon.

copyright 2006, jessica voigts
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Comments: 25
Your descriptions delight and feel like magic.
Wilhelmine-- I know a dance called "St John River" that mimics the tide coming in and out of that river. (for 8 people)
lovely as always jessie!
alice - lucky you! i'm still looking amidst the brown soggy leftover grass for signs of life. nice, nice! did you take a picture?
As a child, living close to Long Island sound, I use to love going to sleep to the sound of fog horns. It wasn't until I moved to New England and walked along fresh water ponds and lakes in the dead of winter that I heard the sounds you're referring to here.
colleen - well, you have to train yourself to listen, don't you? most people don't, i think. they just rush. when i was in japan, and was surprised that everyone had umbrellas (even strapped to their briefcases!) i said, "i don't use an umbrella, i run to my car." sigh. what was i thinking, in this previous life??