Nature is truly an amazing force. Whether plants or animals, Ole Mom Nature has an incredible ability and drive to survive. The February snow and ice are just a memory for most. New growth brings hope. Among the millions of brown leaves, green shoots are starting to appear everywhere. And they aren’t on just the hardy plants. A dear friend gave me a pencil cactus several years ago. Although I brought it inside, I feared I didn’t do so early enough, because all of its little limbs were brown and brittle. However, when I began to trim back the brown limbs, I saw two little shoots coming up from the dirt. Today, I saw a third one. My gift survived, as did the little Sweet Olive Tree next door, the Asian Jasmine along my driveway, and the Star Jasmine on my trellis. I used to think of rose bushes as fragile, but not any longer. They started sprouting new growth shortly after the snow melted. I am still hopeful that my ferns show me green leaves soon.