It isn’t only birds and butterflies that migrate seasonally. There are ocean inhabitants who’ve been gifted with the interior clock that alerts them to when it’s time, and off they go. Then, there’s the two-footed kind from, say, Canada and the northern US who feel the urge to go south as the weather turns from chilly to brutally cold.
For some Canadians, as leaves fall and grass fades to winter pale, there’s a grief-like heaviness that slinks in, a knowing that a long, harsh season is ramping up. And that’s the crux of the matter. It’s so long! Sometimes it feels like the dead of winter by mid-November. And often there’s not the faintest hint of it relenting its icy grip before the beginning of May. I believe the human spirit is geared for a change of season every three months – not six! This means it feels like the final weeks of winter inch forward, agonizingly slowly, sloth like.
The waiting for all things ‘Spring’ was often like mockery, a cruel joke. Easter Sunrise services were often held while standing in snowbanks. Easter services saw ladies shivering in their spring dresses and new hats (yes, it was the dark ages when ladies in hats was the de rigueur dress code).
Even when snow began melting and hopefulness rose up to cheer it on, it wasn’t yet the end. It meant soon, but not very soon. There could still be more snow. There could still be weeks of gray-brown, salt-riddled slush insulting vehicles, eating at undercarriages, and emptying tanks of washer fluid onto filthy windshields. Each year there was great rejoicing when someone saw the first robin, the first crocus, or when night temps didn’t dip below freezing.
But, each year, sooner or later, winter would be forced to yield its sovereignty over the land, leaving way for warm temperatures, mild breezes, and rain showers to wash away the grime. In short, Spring always arrived! As out of nowhere, this pristine, multi-colored season would show up, allowing the multiple layers of clothing to be shed in favor of lighter fare. Green would pop into sight overnight, delighting everyone! It was, as they said, the season of love, and love is truly a many-splendored thing as evidenced in the flowers blooming at every turn. Snowbirds would make their way north with the birds and the butterflies. And the long, dark nights of winter would finally fade into the background as the sun strengthened, and the earth melted under its power. The wait was over! The promise still held! PD
