Spring time in the Carolinas is a magical time. I realize spring time is magical in many places. Here, however, it is extra special. I recall in the north, Spring was a mixed bag of a warm day, a rainy chilly day or a blustery day too windy to go for a walk. Flowers would pop out of the ground and then be covered with a heavy frost or even snow. I know in Northern Wisconsin it could snow well into May.
Things begin popping in the Carolinas in March. By St. Patrick’s Day the dormant brown grass turns green. I tell visitors that is all by design. When April rolls around the dogwoods and Azaleas are painting the landscapes with pink, red, fuschia flourescent colors. The forsthyia bushes are a bright sunshine yellow and usually complement the edge of yards and roadways.
So if this is the good, what’s the bad? Well if you’ve ever lived around pine trees you already know. It’s the pine pollen that covers anything and everything for days on end. Sometimes even weeks. You can sweep your porch and patio, cover your outdoor furniture or even your sportscar, but the yellow persists. Once it finally subsides then here comes the pine tree seedlings. They literally come by the thousands. Sweep the sidewalks and an hour later they are back. Wake up in the morning and another several thousand cover every outdoor surface. You can’t ignore them because they crunch up when you walk on them and bring them into your homes.
By the time the pollen is gone and the seeds have subsided the colors turn from their gorgeous palatte to their usual green. The colors are overwhelming, but it all happens too quickly. You want the beauty to last forever, but it doesn’t. Nothing does.
My dear friend and co-worker turned 100 last week! He still works 20 hours a week. He still drives his own faded blue Toyota Corolla and still does his own grocery shopping. His skin is thin, his back is crooked and his gait is measured and slow. Remarkably his brain, wit and charm is as sharp and beautiful as if he were 25. He takes every day one at a time. Recently he asked me why he is still here. “That’s easy,” I told him. “You have people here who need you to continue to bringing them joy. And God still has plans for you on earth.”
He smiles, rolls his eyes a little and sighs. Sure he has aches and pains, but he takes the good with the bad and that’s what makes him so beautiful.
Likes the azaleas and the dogwoods, he won’t last forever. Nevertheless, we are blessed with each day our world is made more beautiful by the colors of Spring and the presence of this Centagenarian.
Until next time…