济南的春天

戴永夏

濟南的春天，脚步何其匆匆！她既不像江南那样缠绵，也不似塞北那样迟重。她匆匆地来，又匆匆地去。来时带一片茸茸新绿，去时留下一片姹紫嫣红。她明丽，和煦，热情，总把那无限的温馨和暖意，送进千家万户，溶入每个人的心中……

也许因为春天停留的时间太短，也许是盼春的情结太浓，济南人特别珍爱春天，也特别企盼春的到来，十分留意她的行踪。

济南的早春何处寻？

去叩问“万条垂下绿丝绦”的垂柳吧。柳是春的使者，自古人们就把柳和春天连在一起：写春景曰“万树垂杨”，写春色曰“陌头杨柳”，有的干脆就把春天称作“柳条春”。所以著名画家丰子恺说：“最能象征春的神意的，只有垂杨”。

而济南自古就以“家家泉水，户户垂杨”“四面荷花三面柳，一城山色半城湖”闻名于世。当大地寒意未尽，春雪尚未全消，万木还锁在嫩梦中的时候，一夜春风吹来，泉边湖畔，路旁园中，在垂柳一骨碌醒来，原本枯瘦的柳丝立即泛起新绿，冒出密密麻麻鹅黄色的柳芽。

转眼间，嫩芽绽出翠叶，柳丝串成珠帘，千树万树枝叶纷披，汇成一片蓊郁的绿云……于是，孩子们折来柳枝，拧成柳哨，吹出悠扬的春声；大人们采来柳叶，做成菜肴，争相“吃春”，品尝春天的味道；诗人们也折柳入诗，用“千条杨柳数声鸥，一片玻璃一片舟”“湖边山乱柳毵毵，是处桃花雨半含”等佳句，来歌颂美丽的春色……

您也可去感受波光潋滟的大明湖，那里也是春天最早光临的地方。当残冬驱赶着飘零的雪花还在逞着余威的时候，暗暗涌动的春潮就已给湖水卸掉坚冰的铠甲，褪去灰白的沉重。春风掠过湖面，“吹皱一池春水”；春雨洒过湖面，湖水澄碧如兰。湖中鸥鹭嬉戏，舟楫点点；湖边岸柳依依，杂花生树。

整个明湖就似一幅巨大的锦缎，展示出春的多彩多姿，春的生意盎然……酷爱山水的济南人自古就有明湖赏春的习俗。他们三五相邀，呼朋唤友，披着第一缕春光来到湖上，或驾扁舟，或乘画舫，欢歌笑语于碧波之上，沐浴陶醉在春光之中，尽览明湖春色，却又不期然成了明湖早春胜景的画中人……“画船开，红尘外，人从天上载得春来”（元·张养浩：《大明湖泛舟》）；“鹊桥两岸近清明，点逗春光翠叶生。古寺楼台时隐见，画船箫鼓半阴晴……”（清·刘伍宽：《明湖柳色》）古人的这些咏湖佳句，正是明湖赏春景象的真实写照。

从济南的泉水中，您更能寻到一个别致的早春。诚然，济南的泉水是不分四季的，它“永远那么纯洁，永远那么活泼，永远那么鲜明，冒，冒，冒，永不疲乏，永不退缩……”（老舍：《趵突泉的欣赏》）可是，你只要细心访察，仍可及早地从它那里发现春天。早春的万物，似乎都钟情于泉水。不管泉水出现在哪里，那嫩绿的柳丝总是牵着它，金黄的迎春总是迎着它，傲雪的红梅总是逗着它，使得碧玉般的绿水，变得五彩斑斓，璀璨似锦了。是啊，你在泉水中找到的，不就是五彩斑斓的春天吗？

当然，寻春可不能忘记南山的杏花。那些土生土长的山杏，一层层，一片片，杂处在苍松翠柏之间，倔强地生长在山坡上。她们性儿忒急，最耐不住寂寞。每当春节刚过、还是乍暖还寒时节，不待风儿吹净树枝间的残雪，雨儿化淡松柏编织的绿云，万千的杏树枝头便竞相吐出密密的嫩红花苞。还没等叶芽绽开呢，一夜之间，挂着笑靥的繁花就开遍了枝头，染红了山野，“红得像火，粉得像霞，白得像雪”，把个五彩缤纷的春天抢先牵来人间。许多人把梅花称作报春英雄，说她“俏也不争春，只把春来报”。大画家丰子恺先生却另有高见：“梅花带雪开了，说道是泄漏春的消息，但这完全是精神上的春，实际上雨雪霏霏，北风猎猎，与严冬何异？……”宋代大诗人欧阳修在歌咏杏花的诗中，说得就更明白：“谁道梅花早？残年岂是春。何如艳风日，独自占芳辰。”显然，梅杏相较，杏花才应是真正的报春使者。正是南山的杏花这么急火火地一闹，才把济南的春天蓬蓬勃勃地搅了起来……

Where is the early spring in Jinan？

The willow is often regarded as a symbol of the transition from winter to spring， with the two concepts being inextricably linked since ancient times. The gradual disappearance of snow from the ground and the emergence of new buds on trees mark the beginning of spring. As the spring winds begin to blow， the weeping willows by the spring， in the garden， wake up from winter slumber. The original withered willow threads are gradually filled with new green， emerging from the densely dotted goose-yellow willow buds.

Daming Lake is also one of the earliest locations to witness the arrival of spring. As the remnants of winter linger， the dark surge of the spring tide makes its way to the lake， gradually removing the layer of ice that has accumulated. The spring wind sweeps across the lake， creating ripples in the water， while the spring rain sprinkles across the lake， giving it a hue reminiscent of orchids. One may observe gulls engaged in aquatic activities on the lake， with their oars pointing towards the shore. The lake shore is adorned with willow trees， flowers， and other trees.

The springs in Jinan are an excellent location for observing the distinctive characteristics of early spring. While Jinans springs are equally impressive throughout the year， careful observation reveals that the springs exhibit some of the characteristics of an early spring. The water appears to have a vibrant hue， reminiscent of the vibrant colours observed in nature during this season.

Concurrently， the apricot blossoms on the southern mountains are indicative of the advent of spring. The native apricots， intermingled with pines and cypresses， flourish on the slopes. Following the conclusion of the Spring Festival and the cold temperatures， thousands of apricot tree branches will be vying to release a profusion of dense， tender red buds. The mountainous region of Jinan is renowned for its apricot blossoms， which are celebrated for their ability to evoke a sense of renewal and vitality.