The first day of spring, the vernal
equinox, March 20th, 2013, all around I note, and take pleasure in,
the signs of spring. The birds flocking to the bird feeder, the squirrels
mustering at the bird feeder, the dog shedding in the house, and one of my
favorite avian friends, the Hummingbird, all complete with a temperate pleasant
breeze. The surest sign of spring, a jet ski, blast pass my boat dock with the reckless
abandonment only a teenager will dare.
The weather still oscillates between warm and cool over a week. In Houston we can have an 80 plus degree day, followed by a 60 degree day. Most days the windows are open, allowing the winter musk to air out of the house naturally. Spring and fall, hands down the best parts of the year. Now, here, I enjoy the coming of spring. The calamities of life temporarily banished by the joy of life, this is the time to live in the present, the complexity of a modern civilization contrasting with the simplicity of nature.
Our deep time ancestors found
nature far from simple, lighting was the anger of Gods, there be dragons in the
deep sea, wood nymphs rule the dark forest, and gold was made from water plus
sunlight. We have discovered the scientific principle and replaced silly superstition
with fatuous stupid. We comfort ourselves with erudite explanations and
enlightened rationalizations. The violence of a hurricane explained in detail,
killer volcanoes the result of plate tectonics and the cruelty of disease is
simply germ theory. Yes, I feel much better now, thank you Mr. Galileo.
None the less, our deep time ancestors found spring as delightful as we do. They had survived the brutality of winter, the planting season had started and wild game plentiful. The young men strong and the young women fertile, but best of all, grand ma had survived the winter, so they still had a trusted free babysitter. The rebirth of the world, the renewal of hope, the awakening of winter dreams, the longer days with shorter nights, all had a song for the night’s camp fire.
Today we get spring break, Easter
eggs and tax day for our spring enjoyment. These markers of civilization pale
compared to the natural acts of Mother Earth. The time of fresh strawberries, honeysuckles,
and mints, my recommendation, after the kids find all the plastic Wal-Mart
Easter eggs, take a stroll around the park and a deep breath of fresh air.