Spring - A Time of Renewal

03/22/2006

This is without a doubt my most favorite time of the year and I really look forward to it.  Beginning about mid-February, I do a countdown to the equinox.  Spring, bring it on! 

Spring has a pleasant smell of newness to me.  There is redolence in the air, and very soon the spring flowers and honeysuckle plants will add mellifluous scents to it, causing all of us to want to be outside in the verdant freshness of the season.  Notice as the new leaves on the trees burst forth how green they are?  Make note of the vibrant colors of the spring flowers as the buds open to commune with the sun.  Listen to the sounds of the season – birds singing as they seek a mate, brooks babbling as the water trickles down stream and the gentle breeze as it caresses the newly adorned trees.  Just the thought of it makes me want to grab a blanket and go out and lie in the spawning grasses and breathe it all in.

Unfortunately, it will have to wait a few more days.  It was 27 degrees here at the Millennium Farm this Wednesday morning.  The weather dude forecasted snow yesterday, not much but enough to dampen my dream a bit.  West of us got more accumulation than were supposed to get, but it is March and any snow is destined to melt away almost as quickly as it hits the ground.  March snows can be “big ones”, if you get my drift (pun intended).  I have seen some significant March snows in my lifetime that been pretty deep and sloppy.  These are wet, juicy snows, but then they do melt quickly and life goes on.  Within weeks, perhaps days, spring weather will be here to stay and I am excited.

This is truly a “Time of Renewal.” One in which we should all be looking inward and outward, seeking ways to renew our spirit, our mind, our body and our lives.  A time to rededicate and commit ourselves to be the best we can be, to do our best in any and every endeavor, to seek out the best in everything.  It is a time to love.

The photograph below, so artfully taken by me last year just about the time we purchased the Farm, is looking up the half-mile long access road to our house.  The flowering trees I know only as “Red Bud” and have no idea where I heard the name for them or if it is correct.  I know I am thrilled to have them on the property, though the flowers do not last very long – perhaps a week or two.  This is the natural progression of the season, I suppose, things are renewed and quickly mature.  All in all, spring is way too short for me.  So I will take time to smell the flowers, and gaze at the greenery and trees and birds and the young animals, and maybe go roll in the grass, and definitely give thanks that I got to see this one more time.  Suddenly, I find myself getting emotional thinking of how happy I am today just thinking about springtime.  Life is too short not to enjoy it every minute of every day and to share the joy with someone you love. 

Grasp this today: If the mountain was level you couldn’t climb it.