June first, it snowed. The cottonwood trees were sending their white fluffy seed puffs down like large, slow-drifting snowflakes. In places they settled on puddles or coated newly raked garden beds with a light covering that did not melt.

A few days later there was tiny hail mixed in with yet another thundery rain shower, bits of ice click-clacking on the tree leaves. That ice melted so swiftly it seemed an illusion.

During the transition between spring and summer it can be a bit confusing to tell where we are. While the great concerts of birdsong during the first flush of nesting season have diminished, the catbird continues to serenade us, swiftly switching from one song to another. Some I don’t recognize. Are these unfamiliar birds from the winter retreat? Long lost friends routed by diminished habitat or rising temperatures? Thankfully, the wren still sings busily although its nestlings seem to have dispersed from the box. The robin, too, continues to sing its plaintive dawn and dusk melodies. The cardinals remains, brightly plumed and sleek. As the summer solstice approaches it’s comforting to have their songs to accompany us.

Sounds from our nation’s capital are not comforting. The variety and volume of lies have steadily increased over the past few weeks. Some disturbing examples:

■The national budget bill passed by the House of Representatives by one vote is not “beautiful”— it proposes the largest ever transfer of wealth to the richest Americans from everyone in middle- to low-income households. To achieve that transfer, it would cut crucial programs like Medicaid, food support, and veterans’ care; eliminate PBS and NPR; slash FEMA support after storms or other emergencies. It sneakily mandates cuts to Medicare by causing a rise in the national deficit. It cuts life-saving medical programs and research. This bill adds trillions to our national debt; just the prospect of it caused a lowering of our national credit rating. The Senate is making the cuts worse. The bill is immoral. People will die.

■The effort to deport thousands of people daily is based on outright lies about the threat of “invaders;” the southern border is quieter than it has been for years. The greatest number of deportations in recent years was under President Barack Obama. The spontaneous resistance to masked ICE agents rounding up people without warrants in Los Angeles was called “violent” and “huge” when violence was actually limited to a small area of the city; still it allowed the president and his henchman, Stephen Miller, to call in the National Guard over the governor’s and mayor’s objections, and to activate U.S. Marines, in an unprecedented violation of national law. This targeting of people of color is described as “protection” and “law enforcement” when neither is true. The deployment alone may cost $100 million.

■The 90% of court rulings blocking the president’s illegal dismantling and defunding of federal agencies and programs have revealed the administration’s willingness to simply defy the courts. The lies and distortions used by the president’s lawyers have reportedly left judges, whether appointed by Democrats, Republicans or the president himself, aghast and disgusted. Most of these rulings will go before the Supreme Court which has already signaled its disregard for constitutional safeguards and legal precedent.

■The confused, inconsistent approach to foreign affairs lets the war in Gaza drag on producing unspeakable damage, allows the war in Ukraine to be prolonged due to refusal to call out Russia, and now threatens possible entanglement in Israel’s attacks on Iran — our direct involvement could seriously jeopardize not just the region but the world.

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June 14, state Rep. Melissa Hortman and her husband were assassinated in Minnesota by a supporter of the president. Our son attended graduate school with her.

All that day at least 5 million ( 8? 10?) people gathered in more than 2,200 peaceful rallies with a rousing display of solidarity and commitment to our country and its Constitution. The $40 million military parade ordered by the president to coincide with his birthday was limp by comparison.

June 20 is the summer solstice and offers a turning point in the seasons.

June 30: We can’t know what will happen by then, but it is clear that now is the season to proclaim our existence — like the catbird we sing for our missing or distant family or friends even if we have never met them; like the wren we fiercely protect our offspring; like the cardinal we aspire to beauty even amidst hail or tears. Sing out!

Judy Wagner lives in Northfield.