The other morning, I woke up after being away for several days (and coming home in the dark) and looked out my bedroom window with one eye (my head still on the pillow) and FREAKED OUT. Did it really snow again? After a minute of consciousness, I realized, no. That is not snow. It's my cherry blossoms! Yay! This time spring is really here! Even though our sunny days are still accompanied by an unwelcome, arctic chill. Even though it seems really late to be getting started. Even though there were times we thought it would never come.
Here is what I love about this time of year: We have the most warm days ahead of us to look forward to, those between now and the end of summer--which, as some of you know, is my favorite season. My favorite times are directly ahead! Swimming! Fresh fruits! Fresh vegetables! Crickets!
Here is what I hate about this time of year: The next few months ahead seem so short. Even if a single thing is not scheduled, it feels limited, finite, over-booked. I've done the math, and fall and winter are exactly the same length as spring and summer...but then why do they seem so much shorter? I can understand why birds, butterflies, and people fly south for the winter!
Complaining aside, this is the time of year when so much seems possible and anticipation is palpable. Oh, the peonies! The fragrant bushes--lilac, deutzia, and that other bush whose name I can't remember (but it's Korean).
I got a new glider for my front porch. It's made of recycled plastic. I actually got it for working at Rodale for a very, very long time. (It was one of those employee rewards where you get to pick a gift out of a catalog.)
Last night, even though it was frosty, the sky was amazing, and my girls and I snuggled up together with blankets and quietly glided back and forth. I didn't ask them to come out; they just did. I didn't ask them to sit with me (it was a bit of a tight squeeze); they just did. I didn't ask them what they were thinking, either. But here's what I was thinking: Yes, even warmer, better, longer, greener summer days are ahead. But this--this moment--snuggled with my girls as the spring sky turns lavender and the promise of spring lies ahead. This is perfect.
For more from Maria Rodale, visit www.mariasfarmcountrykitchen.com