Every spring, I fall in love. I adore Spring (and probably make a similar post to this every year). Overnight, the grass turns green. One or two early trees will blossom. A day or two later and every tree in the city bursts into flower. All of these changes don't seem to happen gradually, but rather overtake the area in a blitzkreig of color and beauty. I love it. From no where green stalks peep through the earth until you hardly realize it before blossoms are opening. One morning I wake up to find that the cold, drab winter world is gone, and instead it has been replaced by a glorious world of green and life. How fitting is it that Spring is Easter.* What once was dead, the trees, the grass, the earth, is now alive. The plants and it seems the Earth itself resurrects just as I feel I could endure the death of winter no longer.** Our savior died and was reborn in the spring. Spring is new life from death, an empty tomb and a Savior waiting in a garden. A garden. How perfect. For in the garden is the miracle of resurrection yearly witnessed. However hard a winter is for me spiritually (and this one was very hard), spring is a time of renewal and new life always. My soul rejoices with every blade of grass and flower. I see all the colors, the thousand greens, the white, yellow, purple and other flower colors, and I sing praises with my whole being.

The sun warms us and I shed heavy winter clothes and coats. We turned off the heater and threw open all the windows to let the lovely spring breezes fly in and surround us. The sun keeps the house a mite too warm, but the open windows perfectly equalize it. I never used to like open windows, but in the last few years I've learned to love them. It helps that my street is a lot quieter than my old one so I am not so bothered by the noise as I sleep (though often I still close it). My roommate and I always laugh as we remember to close the ground level windows when we go to bed. Jane Austen (the cat) sits on the windowsils and presses her little cat face to the screen (they all have screens so she can't get out). She always has loved to sit and watch out the window, but now she sniffs and stares and can see and hear so much better. She often sits at a window and meows at me until I open the blinds or the window itself.

I too have become a window watcher. Fortunately my desk in the library has floor to ceiling windows with a beautiful view. I stare at the flowers, the trees, the bright green grass, and just smile. If I can't be out there, than at least I can see it.

If you need an ecstasy and an agony for balance, recall that allergies come this time of year too. My chest feels a little tight, in a way that I recall with great horror from my childhood. It actually hasn't felt like this in years. But I refuse to let that damper my spring.

*Okay, so I probably also make this analogy with Christ every year too, and I know that I'm about the 50 millionth person to make this analogy. As trite as it is, it is so true that it reverberates inside every part of me.
**I've just finished reading The Screwtape Letters by C. S. Lewis in which it is observed that as a trial ends, the humans always feel that they could not have endured it one day longer. Too true.

It seems that whenver I do get around to posting, my posts are very long which discourages some of you from reading. Eh, that's life. This is 90% for me anyway, but the feedback from the comments are what keeps me posting in a more continuous way than anywhere else. My paper journal isn't for the mundane daily life stuff. It is for the deeply personal, emotional, prayers, and spiritual reflections. I want them burned at my death. Tim promised to do it. Of course maybe by then I'll be over my own self-importance and won't care what happens to them. Though there is stuff in there that could hurt other people. But they'll probably be dead by then too.

Move update: Still packing. Moving date is still Saturday, though I may not finish the move and start sleeping there for a few more days. If nothing else, my family is out of town until Sunday and I need to puppy sit.

School update: One class I know I have an A in. The others I don't know yet. I have one project left (due on Wednesday) and I'll be done for the semester.

Easter was nice. Went to the Methodist church which makes mom happy. Sang the Hallelujah chorus which has a nice feel since that is the long standing tradition. Had a yummy dinner with all the trimmings. huckleberrycake joined us.