March 2021: Spring, A New Season Has Arrived

Sunday was the first day of spring, and quite honestly it felt so much different from it has in years passed. Why? I think it is because we are now returning to our pre-COVID activities and back to the business of life.  As much as I complained about shelter-in-place and restrictions, I will forever appreciate that COVID let me stop and smell the rose buds during spring.

If you know anything about me, spring is my favorite time of year. It all starts with the time change.  You begin to feel the days slowly get longer; the birds begin to sing differently; and you see buds indicating life is coming. But this year I am grumbling. The purple martins didn’t make a nest in my well-equipped and comfortable accommodations; spring is colder than usual; and I am still dealing with Hurricane Sally damage down here on the Gulf Coast.  I am just too busy to stop and smell those rose buds this year.

I have a bunch of trees in my yard, but I have two trees just outside my house that greet me every morning and my guests when they come to my porch. Hurricane Sally damaged one of them, and she is now leaning. I was afraid I was going to lose her, but I did find a bud the other morning, and it looks like we are going to pull through. What concerns me is I feel like in years past she was already showing more life at this time of year. I think this tree is a great representation of where we are. We all took a hard hit during the pandemic and for some – Hurricane Sally. But, we are on the other side — leaning but alive.

We are working harder to come out this spring. There is so much with high fuel prices, high fertilizer prices and life trying to return to the new normal. For all those reading this, let’s pause and appreciate that we are here, and we survived. We may be forever changed and carry a story with us that our grandchildren will not understand, but we will bud and bloom.