It’s the first week of spring and it’s fair to say spring hasn’t exactly sprung.

You’re probably looking out the window at rain, sleet and or even the odd dusting of snow, wondering when the sunshine will arrive.

It’s been a long, hard winter down here and unfortunately the news isn’t going to get better anytime soon.

The cold weather isn’t the only thing that has done us over.

Influenza and a nasty gastro bug have torn through the district, emptying classrooms and knocking plenty of us flat.

Add a tough start to lambing and calving season on the back of that and it’s little wonder the community is feeling a bit worn down.

Forecasters are predicting this year is going to be rather different with a strong El Nino building, potentially one of the biggest on record.

This means that while most of the country braces for drought, the deep south gets the other end of the deal.

For Southland and coastal Otago, El Nino tends to mean wetter, windier weather and bigger swings between warm and cold.

We are already seeing that pattern and it is expected to keep building right through into summer.

So, it’s time to do what all good Southlanders do and be resilient to get through.

If there is a break in the weather, it’s a good idea to clear your gutters and drains before the next downpour if you can and those on the land will already be watching stock, water and slips as the ground takes a hammering.

The most important thing we can do is look out for each other.

Check in on the farmer who’s had a rough run of it, traipsing through thick mud in the rain to keep lambs and calves alive.

Small things go a long way, a phone call, a meal dropped over, even a smile at the supermarket can go a long way to make a hard season easier.

We’ll get through it, we always do.

Spring will come, but until it does, let’s keep looking after our own and looking forward to summer when it eventually shows up.