Welcome March- and a big fat goodbye to Winter!

It’s March. Have you noticed? I gleefully flipped my calendar over yesterday.  I love a  new month, with all its empty squares that are yet to be filled with appointments and stuff.  I love that for a few days, my time seems to be my own.  It looks lazy.  For a little while.   I especially like this month, because, there, on the 20^th, circled in bright yellow marker, is the day- the first day of Spring!

We’ve had a weak and wimpy winter.  Hardly any snow and our days seldom dipped below freezing.  On those days when it was cold, I had to force feed my children their coats and gloves.  They weren’t convinced.  What is winter?  It hasn’t shown up this year. 

I do like winter. Like all the seasons, it has its virtues.  There’s hot chocolate, which, let’s face it, isn’t enjoyable at any other time.  Steaming cocoa and a sweaty neck just don’t mix.   I’m not a skier, nor do I fancy being wet, so snow has very limited potential.  It’s good for exactly two things.  One, to dress up my mountains in their Sunday best. (They really do look lovely blanketed in sparkling sugar.)  Two, to give me a white Christmas, which it didn’t even do this year. Phooey.  I prefer to watch the snow from inside, under the covers.  Then it’s romantic and pretty. It also helps if I can do this with a friend.   (And I’m not talking about my kids.) 

Thankfully, according to my ‘beaches calendar’ the chilly months are almost behind us.  This is good.  I like the seasons.  I’m a girl who likes change.  One season all the time would bore me. Even if it was ‘beachy’, like my calendar advertsises.   And, Spring is one of my favorites.  (It runs a close second to Fall, the cherished and most beloved season.)  I like mild, no extreme cold or hot, thank you very much. 

Spring is new growth.  Like the crocus.  Adorable little purple flower.  You’d think, being so small, it would be shy. But, no, it pokes its teeny head up from the just warmed soil, determined to be the first to welcome the new season.  Tulips are its taller cousin.  Following on the crocus’s heels, beckoning the sunshine with brightly hued petals. 

Spring is fresh air.  I love opening the windows and letting in a new breath that sweeps out the stale and stagnant,  leaving my home feeling clean and brisk. 

Spring is outdoors.  With the mild winter, our trampoline has been used all year.  But, with the warmer days, my children can play outside without the rosy-cheeked, frozen-fingered and runny-nosed results.

Spring is renewal.  The sunshine and warmth fill my soul with hope for new beginnings.  It’s also time for General  Conference, when our church leaders speak to us.  Spiritual rejuvenation and guidance, what a great combination.  Also, we get to watch at home, as a family, in our jammies. 

Spring is promise.  Promise that after a long, hard (or wimpy) winter, there is warmth and sunshine ahead.   I can shed my sweaters and chuck my shoes to the back of the closet where they belong.  There is hope for new goals and happy, warm days spent with my children. Time to tilt your head back and soak it up.  

What do you love about Spring?