The first thing I heard as I arrived at work this morning was the two-note song of the phoebe, and immediately my day improved. It's not the prettiest song--just a raspy "fee-bee" repeated over and over--nor is the phoebe, a simple, dapper gray and white flycatcher, the most striking of songbirds. But the bird's arrival shouts "Spring!" into the mild morning air.

Not long after, my husband emailed excitedly from his office that he too had heard his first phoebe of the season. Our pleasures are simple this time of year--we just want Mother Nature to keep reminding us that warmer weather, green leaves, flowers, and birds are slowly but surely returning.

First phoebe's song,
wasp exploring sunlit eaves.
Can you feel it in the air?