Spring in the Greenhouse

 

Thinking back to my childhood, I try to remember what first signaled Spring to me those many years ago. I remember snow – lots and lots of snow. Piled high along the edges of the streets where the snow plows had pushed it, stained dark gray from the dust and months of shoveling, it often rose higher than my head. And then, almost unperceptively, it became a soggy brown slush that was fun to splash through, but not so much when spewed up from beneath a passing car. It ran in dirty rivulets down street gutters, disappeared into corner drains, carrying with it the muck from a long, frozen season. As hillsides, yards, and gardens again became visible from under the sodden blanket, new green growth gradually pushed up. Most of all, I remember crocuses – brilliant splashes of deep purple and sunny gold against dark, soggy earth.

In our greenhouses, spring arrived early. Entering them was like arriving at some other, more exotic, part of the world - warm, humid, and sweetly scented. The heat was generated in a huge, gas-fired boiler in the basement which heated water that passed through cast iron pipes that ran under each of the long, wooden benches.
 

Photo from homedepot.com

The benches were filled with dark, rich, soil and tall carnations of red, pink, and white. To this day I love the white ones best because of their spicy, cinnamon-like scent. There were also potted plants set on flat wooden platforms on top of some of the unplanted benches.

 Photo from flowers-in-world.blogspot.com

 

I can picture the pink and white azaleas, magenta cyclamens, calceolaria with their purse-like spotted yellow and orange flowers, daisy-like cinnerareas, and row upon row of Easter lilies. The super-sweet smell of the lilies trumped all the other scents as Easter neared and their number increased. Many began to sport brightly-colored foil wrappings with satin bows, lined up like so many spotless children ready for a birthday party.

 

Photo from plantsrescue.com

 

These plants all needed care – weeding, fertilizing, watering, and occasional pest-removal. The daily watering increased the humidity, which caused the single paned glass houses to fog up with the still frigid air outside. The heat and humidity were in there all year long, as were some of the flowering plants, but the lilies only came around Easter time.

 

 Photo from writeopinions.com

We could, and did, bring plants and flowers into our house most any time we wanted, which was a privilege and a luxury that I now know I didn’t appreciate at the time. We always had an Easter lily and a lovely spring centerpiece for our dinner on Easter Sunday. Even though it sometimes snowed then, signaling that winter was not “quite” over yet, it was always Springtime at Easter inside our home. If I close my eyes and remember those times, I always smell the sweetness of the lilies.

 

No matter what date it fell on or whether it snowed again, Easter always ushered in Spring. We knew that it was only a matter of time before tulip and daffodils sprouted and bloomed, followed by lilacs and crabapple blossoms. The snow finally disappeared altogether, the air warmed, mud dried up, grass turned green and grew tall. The morning came when we awoke to the familiar song of the robin, back from its winter migration and by evening we’d hear the mournful cry of the mourning dove perched on the power line above the back alley.

 

Photo from flowerspictures.org

 

Everything was fresh and new again – sun, warmth, growth, flowers, scents, and song.

A stimulating renewal after a long, frozen winter.

To me, this truly signifies what Easter is all about.

For behold, the winter is past; the rain is over and gone. The flowers appear on the earth, the time of singing has come, and the voice of the turtledove is heard in our land.            Song of Solomon 2:11-12

Those Small Rays of Hope

"Hope is being able to see that there is light

despite all the darkness."

Desmond Tutu

As this new year progresses, we are ever more aware that we truly are a part of a greater global community. Degradation of our environment, poverty, war, pestilence, hatred, and violence seem to be unending and it is easy to allow that to dominate one's thinking. Indeed, the world can seem a very dark place with evil rampant. The problems appear myriad and the solutions hopeless. After all, what can each of us, alone and insignificant, do?

I believe we need to look for those small, bright rays of goodness and action that we see in those around us. Begin locally and then widen your circle of awareness. We all may look for different things, and not agree on all of those, but here is a sprinkling of what gives me hope:

• One of our High School's recent graduates has begun college with plans to study engineering and develop prostheses for those with physical disabilities.

• A neighbor helps sponsor a local gathering each November where the sole purpose - besides having fun - is to collect gifts for the needy. This year that was just under $4,500 in cash, food and toys. Each year, I see more people responding to the needs of those less fortunate.

• One of my friends has worked diligently for years on generating no waste. Through her creative re-use, far-reaching recycling, and non-judgmental example, she has inspired many others to lessen their impacts on our environment.

• One of our county's residents publically offered to run errands for or accompany any Muslim citizens who were feeling threatened or afraid because of outrage aimed at Muslims over recent violence. Many others have agreed to help in this way.

• The Washington governor's 2016 budget addresses urgent needs in the state’s mental health system, including new spending on mental health programs.

• The endangered Southern Resident Killer Whales have eight new calves this year.

• 70% of Washington voters enacted a state law banning trade of parts or products made from elephant ivory, rhino horns and other species of endangered wildlife, including lions, tigers, leopards, cheetahs, pangolins, certain marine turtles, sharks and rays.

• A 21 year old Dutch engineering student is working to develop technologies to extract, prevent, and intercept plastic pollution in our oceans. He plans to initiate the largest cleanup in history.

The answer, I believe, is in holding tight to HOPE and basing our actions on that, for without it we truly are lost.

"For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD,

“plans to prosper you and not to harm you,

plans to give you hope and a future."

~ Jeremiah 29:11

Spring Means New Beginnings

 

On this day, I simply want to BE - to soak up some sun and enjoy the spectacular views. Sitting on a grassy bluff surrounded by towering madrone and Douglas fir trees, I gaze across the vast expanse of sand exposed by the receding tide. Beyond the sands lay the waters of Georgia Strait, snow-capped mountains of mainland British Columbia forming a dramatic backdrop. Closing my eyes briefly, I hear the soft swish of the wind in the trees and feel the warmth of the sun on my face. We have come here for rest and relaxation - what a day to be alive!

 

We have come through the long season of darkness. Some of us may carry heavy burdens and feel no relief with this passage of time. But we are still here as the days lengthen and the earth warms.

As Easter people, we have passed through a time of sadness and grief and come forward into the light of new hope. Once again, we witness a season of newness and rebirth.

In the woods blooms appear on Indian plum, salmonberry, red flowering current and Oregon grape, while redwood sorrel, trillium, and delicate Pacific bleeding heart brighten the forest floor.

 

 

In our yards forsythia, dogwood, rhododendron, bluebells, tulips, and many others burst forth in various colors and scents.

 

We drift off to sleep with the peeping of frogs and awake to the singing of birds, which are already nesting and caring for young; young fawns will soon be seen with their cautious mothers.

 

Dusty, bug-gnawed leaves will be seen later, but now all new growth appears shiny-bright and squeaky-clean.

 

We anticipate all that is new: a landscape full of surprises, a first-born child, a joining of lives in marriage.  Still to come are graduations, anniversaries, and celebrations we’ve yet to plan. Rejoice in this, for as spring progresses with wave after wave of sprouting, unfolding, and blooming we are led toward the full-fledged burgeoning of summer. After our dark, cool, wet winters who does not welcome that?

It is a time to savor and enjoy. There is much to be learned from the never-ending cycle of seasons, for we can – each of us – begin anew; we can be refreshed, changed, improved.

 

If there are things undone, we can do them. If we owe an apology or need to make amends, we can do that. If we are weary, we can rest. We can get our affairs in order; if necessary, we can say our good-byes. We can change our household, our appearance, our habits, our state of mind, our outlook or attitude. We can change our actions, or finally act at all. We can accept that challenge, take on that task, meet that new person, or send that letter. We can make that call, visit that friend, and hold that hand. This is a time of renewal and second chances - thank GOD we have those.

 

"Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past.

See, I am doing a new thing!

Now it springs up; do you not perceive it?

Isaiah 43:18-19

 

All Goes Round

Round

is the sun,

seeming to rise each day

and descend each night,

 

 

providing heat and light and more

than a touch of mystery.

 

 

It is round

we are told,

but we dare not stare it in the face

 

 

to see for ourselves

except in that very rare case.

 

 

Round

is the moon

appearing to rise and traverse the sky.

 

 

Although it may not be fully seen

from where we are,

 

 

so small and far below,

I see its rounded edge.

 

 

I know this is true,

for I have seen its full, round face

 

 

reflecting back the sun's warm glow

more times than you may ever know.

 

 

Round

is the earth

 

 

although I cannot easily detect it,

 

 

nor can you,

nor most others across thousands of years.

 

 

Some, I'm told,

had the depth of curiosity,

 

 

imagination, vision, and fortitude

to prove that it was so.

 

 

And so it is,

as by now we all surely know.

 

 

Round

is found here

- on this earth which hangs suspended

 

 

as if on an invisible cord,

dangling in the immense void -

rhythmically reflected in myriad things.

 

 

I know not how,

nor do most of us, nor do we care,

 

 

which is a shame

 

 

for round is found

most everywhere.

 

 

"The soul goes round upon a wheel of stars and all things return....Good and evil go round in a wheel that is one thing and not many.





 

Do you not realise in your heart, do you not believe behind all your beliefs, that there is but one reality and we are its shadows; and that all things are but aspects of one thing; a centre where men melt into Man and Man into God? ..."

 ~ Gilbert Keith Chesterton