Green Things

Louisiana's semitropical climate means the scenery around here never looks totally dead in the winter. Drab, yes, but not dead. Spring weather usually comes early for us, but this year it's been lagging. A lot of trees that would normally be budding by now are still bare, like this one in my neighbor's yard:

The good news is that bare trees are exceptions. Our world is turning green again. I can't think of anything I find more invigorating than the varied green hues of nature. Those vivid colors make me feel as if, having been long deprived of oxygen, I've suddenly regained the ability to inhale full, rich breaths. I'd be inclined to write that off as imagination, except that leaves really do give off oxygen, so maybe there's more to it than that.

I love the way the morning light shines on this tree behind my back fence, making its leaves glisten like shards of stained glass:

In the late afternoon the sun shines from the opposite direction, lighting up the front lawn and the low-hanging branches of our live-oak tree:

Across the road and a little farther north, where the little patch of woods thins out,
the afternoon sun backlights the trees and casts long shadows across newly green grass:

Of course, the trees and the grass aren't the only green things showing a sudden burst of life:

The lizards are flourishing. As I write this, a big one like the one in the picture is in my house. I opened the backdoor, Levi stepped out, saw the lizard, and made a grab for it. The lizard made a fake-out move, then ran between Levi's legs and through the open door, where it promptly darted behind a row of heavy bookcases.

I don't mind these creatures at all when they're outside where they belong, but they make me nervous when they come inside. I'm hoping this one will stay where it is and watch for an opportunity to make its way outside again. I have goosebumps from just thinking about what could happen if it decides to explore my house. If you never see another post here, you'll know it jumped on me.