“It looks like we’ve made it.”

“I think we’ve survived.”

“I hope we never see another winter like this one.”

These comments, and others like them, are being heard from friends and neighbors at the post office, coffee shop and grocery store as folks breathe a sigh of relief, albeit a bit guarded, that spring may be on the horizon here in Midcoast Maine.

Most of the snow has melted, although some of us were sure the snowbanks on the side of the road and in parking lots might still be visible on July 4.

Surprisingly, it didn’t take too many days of above freezing temperatures to work their magic on the piles of white stuff covering our lawns and the sides of the roads. Even the birds seem to sense that the worst is over, as they flit about.

Unfortunately, a sure sign of spring can be seen — and felt — on our roads. Unexpected dips and humps appear everywhere, especially when you least expect them. It’s easy to understand why we’re seeing so many commercials for new shocks and brakes; repairmen know we’ll probably all be visiting them in the near future.

Public works crews will have their work cut out for them in the next few weeks, trying to make both dirt and paved roads feel less like a roller coaster ride.

While there are many signs that winter may be over, to us it’s the reopening, or awakening, of our business community after a long and not-so-profitable few months, that’s most welcome. We’re sure that for most of them, this winter was worse than most, because one snowstorm after another after another often made it unwise to venture out.

We look forward with anticipation to the reopening of some of the “early birds” who don’t wait for Memorial Day to welcome customers, such as Big Al’s, Sea Basket and Red’s Eats in Wiscasset, and Tugboat, Dunton’s Doghouse and Whale’s Tale in the Boothbay area.

Other indications that summer will soon be here include spring school vacation and the list of Help Wanted advertisements in our papers, as seasonal businesses look for new staff members to greet customers. Right now, the classified pages are filled with these offers of summer employment.

Of course, Fishermen’s Festival in Boothbay Harbor marks the beginning of the “summer” season for many of us, because it usually finds many cottage owners making their first check of their properties, doing a little spring cleaning, and hoping that summer water will be turned on soon. They get caught up in the fun and merriment of the weekend events that pay tribute to Maine’s fishermen and their families.

We’re excited about the many signs of the pending summer season and know that those of us who stuck it out here all winter long deserve a pat on the back for surviving a winter we hope and pray won’t be duplicated for many, many years to come.