a stranger in a strange land

I don't recall the source of the language in the title of my blog today.  But the words fit the experience I had today.

I took a walk to enjoy the glorious day, and to get some exercise, which isn't a big whoop, except to me, on my quest to lose a little weight and lower my blood pressure. 

I ventured out in the late afternoon, encountering snow, ice, puddles and mud.  The air was juicy with smells, which told little secrets about the people living in the houses as I walked by.  Someone was drying clothes, and the odor of dryer sheets was amazingly strong.  It hit me like invisible cloud of chemicals, and I cringed at the thought of breathing in someone's laundry.  The odors of french fries cooking in the local cafe, and the exhaust from an old beater of a car mingled together in my nose.  Someone was grilling burgers, and it smelled suddenly like summer!  The melting snow piles exposed the earth and the smell of mud was prevalent and pleasing.

The sounds of dogs barking, and neighbors calling out to each other startled me, as the noise came suddenly and out of now where.  The street lights started popping on, buzzing more loudly than I remember from last year.  I heard kids at the skate park, whooping and laughing.  Melted snow was running into the street drains and sounded like someone left the faucet on at the sink. 

This sensory adventure happens to me every year.  I avoid the cold of winter, so I spend my time indoors.  And I live alone, so I am surrounded my quiet in my home.  This explosion of human activity seems new and foreign to me in the springtime when it hits my ears and nose, so unexpectedly.  It seems that the world, and I, are waking up together and crawling out of our dens.  Of course, it is only me that is new to this strange new world.  The world has been awake all along.