Welcome Spring

Why is it that a bit of fresh air sailing over my face each morning connects me to all that lives and breathes outside of my window? The white-tailed bucks safe in the shadows, the grey squirrels ready for a round of tag, the woodpecker tattooing the lifeless oak.

There are no curtains in my house but I do have a habit of keeping the occasional shade at peak in order to open our home to the celestial sphere – the canopy of trees, the sky, the moon, the clouds and stars. I’ve never really understood drapery-as it seems to diminish the notion of having windows at all. What an amazing world lies right outside. I have always wanted to be open to the wild - the light and life outdoors. Sometimes I think I belong there. It seems to always be calling my name.

Some consider that ‘mankind’ has dominion over all of nature-over field and fauna and every creature – but I do believe that the charge is and has always been that we humans have a call to stewardship with nature-we are here to defend and protect this beautiful earth- and all of the life that we live beside - and if we don’t, we will have nowhere else to live. Again, even the tiniest ant when washed down the sink drain pulls itself towards the light – each being small and large - ourselves included shares an energy that pulls towards life.

Nature is the holiest book ever written- a picture book we might say – no need for translation, interpretation, debate. Just a clear vision of the miracle of life. I can hear the ocean waves right now and an owl in the brambles outside my window. I can feel the expanse of the sky above and the sea stretching beyond the horizon. And if I close my eyes and breathe in slowly, I can feel a part of all that lives and breathes along with me. My hope is that all of our hearts turn toward this call and our critical role as stewards of this beautiful earth and all of her creatures.

The spring alarm goes off this week-time to wake up and get our fingernails dirty. My mom would have her sugar snap peas in by Saint Patrick’s Day. The dandelions will be popping up and bees will get their first sip of nectar. Soon I will be hosting my beloved hummingbirds. My yard welcomes this spring soiree. Peepers-check/Daffodils-check/ tulips-check/songbirds-check/ budding trees-check-we’re all set! Welcome spring!!!