Wednesday, March 13, 2013

Spring hopes

Sunday was spring.

There was hope in the air, so I breathed some in.  It felt good for my soul, so I breathed in some more.

I walked in the park.  People were stirring.  I guess they wanted some hope, too.

Suddenly, it seemed like this winter had lasted forever.

Wanting to take full advantage of the new weather, I fired up the grill for ribs, mushrooms, peppers, and potatoes.  After supper, we roasted marshmallows over the fire pit, then gathered around it for warmth as the night air grew chilly once again.

No matter how many years I file away, that first burst of spring always feels fresh and new all over again.  I think it always will.  I hope that it always does.

How does one describe that feeling?  How do you write a spring day?  For it is nothing you can hold in your hand.  It's something far better lived than imagined, breathed in than read, experienced than not.  But better it be written, than forgotten.

Just as September has that one day every year where fall announces its arrival with the first hint of a chill in the air, March has its own day, and spring, its own news to declare -- tidings of warmth, and yes, hope.

Sunday was that day.

Winter's cold had returned by Monday morn, but it was a different cold.  A sunny and bright crispness, rather than the usual gray and drear.

And there was hope.  The hope of spring.  The hope of something better.

And I knew that winter wouldn't be long.

"You only need the light when it's burning low / Only miss the sun when it starts to snow / Only know you love her when you let her go..."

15 comments:

  1. Sunday sounds as close to one of those rare perfect days as exists. Except for the mushrooms, of course.

    :)

    Love the line "How do you write a spring day?"

    ReplyDelete
  2. Loved that line also

    Loved how you captured the promise of spring where everything begins new and smells incredible and makes you happy to be alive.

    Until your face swells and you start coughing and sneezing but that could just be me

    ReplyDelete
  3. What cracks me up is that in the fall, when it first hits the 60's, everybody is running around in their winter coats. But in the spring, when it hits the 50's, everybody is running around in shorts and t shirts.

    ReplyDelete
  4. TC - I suppose it was as perfect as a day could be without the ocean. Or an Alabama football game.

    Cami - Can I get an amen!

    Pia - Yeah, I workshopped that face-swelling bit. It didn't seem to fit the mood and spirit of the post :)

    MarkD - Good observation. Of course, I would like to note that you're the guy who refers to the low 70's as "cold."

    ReplyDelete
  5. We're still waiting on that first day up here. It is getting closer but it is still brown and cold up here.

    ReplyDelete
  6. I concur with Ed except we did have a 50 degree last week. I'm holding on to that precious memory today when it's 34 degrees. We're so close.

    I also think people from Alabama shouldn't complain about winters. Just sayin'. ;-)

    ReplyDelete
  7. We haven't had a good winter in a couple of years now and I'm a little sad--I did get out on skis several times this year, but not enough. I like those spring Easter egg hunts in the snow!

    ReplyDelete
  8. l o v e l y.

    I smell the green.

    ReplyDelete
  9. You captured that day here, and like Pia wrote, one of the best things about it is that you get the new feeling without the new hayfever. I also want to come to one of your cookouts-yum!

    ReplyDelete
  10. How eloquently you've described that first sense one has of spring...thanks for sharing that, Bone. I agree with you that it energizes the spirit when that day arrives!

    ReplyDelete
  11. Ed - I kinda figured as much. I was thinking of you northern folk as I was writing this.

    Murf - Our winters are much worse! Sure, it's not as cold. But at least you get gorgeous snows. (Don't you?) We get nothing but gray and dead nothingness.

    Sage - Well, Easter falls early this year. Maybe you'll get another one of those yet.

    My Inner Chick - Thank you. Thanks for stopping by.

    Heidi - Just a quick FYI regarding cookouts: one of my previous (self-appointed) nicknames was Grillmaster B.

    Sherri B - Thanks Sherri. 'Tis a spirit lifter, for sure.

    ReplyDelete
  12. How does one describe that feeling? How do you write a spring day? For it is nothing you can hold in your hand. It's something far better lived than imagined, breathed in than read, experienced than not. But better it be written, than forgotten. - I loved that paragraph. Spring is like magic. I love how everyone's in a great mood and time skims by, nothing seeming as stressful as it did the day before on that first bright morning of the season. Great post :)

    ReplyDelete
  13. Clearly, we live in dramatically different parts of the country (HELLO, five inches of snow today!), yet our current posts have some overlaps. There is something about the start of spring. Something about it.

    ReplyDelete
  14. J Adamthwaite - Thank you. It is rather amazing, the effect the weather has on our moods and outlooks.

    Jocelyn - Well, our first blast of spring lasted all of about two days. It's been cold most of the past couple of weeks. Well, cold for here. But not a bit of snow.

    ReplyDelete