Bit By Bit by Susan L.

  Most of Saturday was spent outside chopping branches, burning brush and raking the grass to get all the little twigs up. They will play havoc on the lawn mower if left lying. Clean up was a priority. It was cold though, with flakes of snow drifting down. The heat from the fire was most welcomed.
  It took some major decision making about where on the driveway to build the fire. It couldn't be too close to any dead grass. April is notorious for grass fires and there was no way I wanted to start one. It couldn't be in the middle because of needing to get the car out past it. It couldn't be near where hydro marked the spot for the new pole in case they came.
  Gee. This sounds a bit like a Goldilocks' dilemma!
  Eventually a place was picked that was ju-u-st right. It took some huffing and puffing to get the sap filled, black willow to ignite but once it got going, it quickly burned down armful after armful of brush. It sizzled and hissed and groaned but the moisture content meant there were no sparks to keep and eye on. Yay!
  A friend came over to enjoy the taste of camping experience. We laughed about sitting at the end of the driveway in our comfy chairs, tea in hand, watching the world go by.
  It was a successful day. Nearly half of the fallen branches are done away with. There's the beginnings of a future bonfire wood pile in the back for when warmer days arrive.
  The snow kept falling so that put an end to clean up for the weekend. When I ended up shovelling the driveway yesterday morning I wondered what the new arrivals from Syria thought of it all. This is really an unusually late snow!
  Hopefully the snow will be gone by next weekend so some more clean up will get done before the grass gets growing. Or not.
  "For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, is working for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory, while we do not look at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen. For the things which are seen are temporary, but the things which are not seen are eternal." 2 Cor 4:17-18