Spring time for cleaning, projects (3/28/05)

It seems like I am awakening from a long nap. I can feel the lethargy of the winter evaporate with the warm spring sun. Or at least I could yesterday when the sun was shining. I want to get outside and play in the dirt some more except that it is drizzling and I haven’t enjoyed being out in the rain since I was a child.

We finally got all our seeds planted in neat little plastic trays. When they get big enough they will go out into the garden and flower beds. Normally we would have done this a month or two ago but we never got around to it. Time slips away so quickly these days.

We started the usual assortment of vegetables and flowers and something called a chocolate flower. I am hoping it will have chocolate bars as blossoms. All the package said was that it smelled like chocolate. It’s too bad there isn’t such a thing as a chocolate covered cherry tree. If there are any horticulturists out there, could you see about developing such a plant?

Spring is the time for cleaning out garden beds and straightening up the yard. If you are blessed with small children then you will be finding Easter leftovers for several months. Well-hidden eggs tend to hang around as long as pine needles from the Christmas tree only it doesn’t hurt as much to step on them with bare feet.

One spring we colored eggs several times after Easter because the neighborhood children enjoyed it so much. My husband wasn’t too happy with me because I used his undershirts to put on the toddlers so they would go home with the same color clothing they had on when they arrived. It all washed out … eventually. Now one of those former toddlers is dyeing eggs with her sister’s children. I wonder if she borrows her husband’s shirts to use for aprons.

I have several new projects in the works and the winter chores are almost finished. Starting something new always gives me a burst of energy. I think we all need a change of pace on occasion. Spring is the perfect excuse to clean out the cobwebs of our lives as we scrub the house from top to bottom. We can choose to get rid of outdated ideas the way we toss clothing we have outgrown.

We can rediscover old friends like we rediscover a favorite T-shirt that we haven’t seen all winter or we can find that those friendships no longer fit the person we have become. We choose to keep some things that seem useless because they have an innate sentimental value. The memories attached to objects are far more precious than the objects themselves. For instance, I have several lacy crocheted things that will never be used but must be kept because they connect me with my mother and grandmother. You probably have your own set of concrete memories tucked away somewhere.

Spring is the time for rebirth and renewal. We promise ourselves that we will exercise more now that the weather is nice. In reality, a long walk is a perfect excuse to be outside soaking up the sunshine. Plants may use sunshine for photosynthesis but I use it to promote a sense of well-being after the dark days of winter. The increased hours of daylight give me new energy for all the projects I have planned. Plus I get to play in the dirt while I pull the dried grasses away from the egg-yolk colored crocus that signal spring. Once I get the yard straightened up then I can start on one of the many projects I have planned.[[In-content Ad]]