first robin of spring

first robin of spring,

bold redbreast against bare branch,

waiting for ground thaw

Coming back from a walk in the woods I catch a flash of red-orange in the bare branches of a tree by Jack's Pond, the first Robin of Spring. Then another, and another, three red-breasted Robins, plump and healthy. The ground is still too frozen for earthworm-delving, so the Robins flit silently from tree to tree, searching for the last of the wild plums and chokecherries. They've been here all winter, roosting in trees, but mostly go unnoticed until they start hopping around on the grass, cocking an ear to the ground, listening for earthworms.