A WORD (OR TWO HUNDRED) FROM THE EDITOR

Canadian winters are often described as grey. A grey sky, a grey wash over the landscape. With the spring equinox falling on March 20, we will soon be officially done with winter. However, with everything around me still under a blanket of snow, I thought I would  catalogue the colours of the season for a couple days, looking out at what I can see from our kitchen window.

A man in black (yes, head-to-toe!) walks by on the trail our home backs on to with a black-and-white dog, both merging into the landscape.

A couple walking by in matching beige would also blend in, if it were not for their dog in a bright orange sweater.

Three little kids tumble down the path in identical furry coats and those adorable hats with little ears on top, like happy bear cubs.

A woman in a pretty pink jacket is a regular – she walks slowly, reaching into her bag for treats for the geese that gather around her. Probably shouldn’t be feeding wild birds, I know, but it’s just such a beautiful sight.

A children’s swingset, a slide and a little playhouse, stand silent in a neighbour’s backyard, waiting for the kids that will play and shriek in joy in a few weeks. The bright yellow, red and green of the playset jump out against the snowy backdrop.

Dressed in a fluffy white coat, black hat and a bright red scarf, a lady looks like a snow(wo)man out for a stroll.

A cat steps onto another neighbour’s snow-covered deck. I imagine it sniffing in disdain as it steps right back inside. But not before it alerts me to its presence with the little bell attached to the saucy polka-dotted bow around its neck. Who belled this cat, I wonder.

A young woman pulls a toboggan up a slope. Her scarf and the pompom on her toque are a splash of red. The toboggan is spilling over with little ones, all in bright colours, all unable to control their glee.

A young girl does a flamingo on the frozen pond as she pirouettes in pink, one leg bent in an angle at the knee while a proud parent records the future ice-skating star.

A young man runs laps around the path in a neon-green jacket. He reappears in my field of vision a second time and then again, his movements so effortless and light, they make almost a mockery of others lumbering by in bulky winter jackets.

Someone lost a plaid scarf on the path and someone else picked it up and tied it to a young tree. If the owner walked by again, he or she obviously chose to leave it there, fluttering bravely in the wind, reminding me of Tibetan prayer flags.

A jewel-bright sky looks down and snowflakes sparkle like a shower of stars in the sun.

These are the colours that brighten my days, harbingers of even brighter hues to come.

Happy Nauruz! Happy Holi!

Shagorika Easwar