Spring has sprung

For folks in the Northern Hemisphere, yesterday was the first day of spring. I remember as a kid growing up in Cooperstown, New York when the crocuses would be pushing through the snow, you could tell that spring was here. (I actually like the hyacinths even better, which is appropriate since they are so often associated with spring and rebirth). If you are not a fan of snow and cold, this day usually signals that the weather is improving and things will be nicer.

My mom used to say "Spring is sprung, The grass is riz, I wonder where the flowers is. The boid is on the wing - Absoid! Of course the wing is on the boid.” Oh and I have no idea who wrote that, and yes there are various versions of it floating around, but as spring begins, I always think of Mom and those silly words.

Yesterday also happened to be the day that Christians celebrated Palm Sunday, and it was on Palm Sunday four years ago that my favorite aunt died. The following year her sister, my mom, lay in a hospital near death on Palm Sunday. I remember the priest bringing by a palm and my sister and I putting it on the wall over Mom's bed. She held on through the night, but died the next day. Some of my memories at this time of year are not happy ones. I know that his blog isn't about me, but I fear that all of us have times when there are sad memories. That doesn't mean we shouldn't be happy.

If you celebrate Easter, that's just a week away. How can anyone not be happy with the joy that Easter represents? I said that hyacinths represent rebirth, and that certainly is good too. No matter how bad something is or how sad a moment we experience, there is always reason to go forward and see all the good that is springing to life around us. We can make goodness shine by our words and our actions. We can propel the rebirth of our joys into our futures. Let's make it so!