The Yankee Enjoys Spring

I've always preferred Spring and Fall to Summer and Winter. Although if I had to choose one of the latter two seasons, it would be Winter. In the Winter you can always put on another layer of clothing, but in the Summer there are only so many layers you can remove!

This year we had an unusually mild Winter, which led to an early Spring. Back in Connecticut before I left, the Dogwood blooms came and went before the annual Dogwood Festivals. The Lilacs bloomed long before Memorial Day. Many of the trees started budding before the Daffodils bloomed. By the time I arrived in Virginia it was practically Summer!

Well perhaps late Spring, even though it was the first of May. But even here the whole seasonal timetable seems off. The roses, which usually start blooming shortly before Commencement, were flowering the week after Easter (I was here for a couple of days of meetings before I moved and started the job). And Summer humidity has already reared its ugly head. Even the locals were not amused.

One of the nice things about the Seminary is the amount of green space. The main part of the campus sits around what is called The Grove. It has too many trees to be a lawn and too small an area with too few trees to be called woods. A few benches dot the upper end, and there's even a swing; one of four that mysteriously appeared around campus toward the end of the term. The Grove is literally my front yard. Fortunately, I don't have to maintain it. They do such a thorough job that I've seen all of two Dandelions so far. One of the things I remember about Rockford in the last weeks leading up to Commencement is the Dandelions that covered the big open space in the middle of the main part of campus. No Dandelions here, but plenty of Clover.

The slower pace here provides opportunities throughout the day to notice the landscape around me and its inhabitants. Lots of chipmunks scurry around, and I often watch them dart into the storm drains along the Grove as I walk toward them. Several of the squirrels here are darker than I'm used to seeing. I've even one that's nearly black. There are birds I don't recognize. I could go invest in a field guide, but for now I'm enjoying noticing all that's different amidst that which is familiar.

Spring is a new beginning...