tight in the bud

I am having trouble getting into 2012, somehow. It seems as if fun and laughter, joy and happiness have been packed away with the baubles and the tinsel.  Those warm cosy days that we enjoyed between Christmas and the New Year Year have dwindled away and here we are, left with exhaustion and sick husbands and sons, and this endless English gloom of grey skies and chilly winds.  At least the bulbs are coming up in their pots in my little garden, I planted daffodils and hyacinths in the autumn and it's cheery to see the little green shoots starting to make their way out of the earth. The little rose on the back doorstep has been in bud for several weeks – two little buds have remained tightly furled for so long, I guess they will stay that way until we get a warm sunny day, whenever that may be. Maybe I will too.