Sunday 11 March 2012

Spring forward and fall flat on your face?



This weekend we turn the clocks forward. I don't really like loosing that hour. That's precious time lost. I guess it isn't really lost,since it was borrowed last fall,  but it feels lost. And I have a lot of things I'd like to do. I can't really afford that hour.  I also don't like getting up at 4:30, which the clock says is 5:30 (that's what time my toddler wakes up).

I'm also not that big of a fan of Spring. It promises so much and delivers so little. Perhaps that is because that here in Edmonton we don't really have "Spring," or 4 distinct seasons, for that matter. That's a European conception imposed on North America. If we follow the Cree indigenous marking of seasons, we are entering the time of blustery winds, which makes quite a bit more sense. This conception of the season doesn't set us up for disappointment either. All those Spring fashions in the store that we won't be able to wear until Summer- it drives me crazy! PLus Remy, my son, needs  new pair of winter boots. This shouldn't matter because it is March, but we may need to wear them for two months. There aren't any in the stores any more. All they have are sandals. That's not much help here.

The cold, the snow, the wind, the wetness- blech. And when all of the lovely snow does melt, it reveals a hideous barrenness of dead foliage, dry brown grass, and all that gravel that was put on the roads during the winter.

As much as a challenge that bundling everyone up before we leave the house can be- gathering up all the tiny mittens, getting those mittens on tiny hands, the scattered hats and scarves and boots, snow pants, coats, etc, I don't mind winter. I used to love winter- in BC (the time Before Children), that is. Luka, my giant dog and I would go snow shoeing - well, I would snow shoe and he would bound through the snow. We spent many blissful hours exploring the river valley in this quiet and healthy manner. This isn't quite possible at this time, although I know that when the little people in our house are just a little bigger, we will do it again. I also used to live for shinny on the outdoor rink, and playing hockey on sunday nights. This too will come back in my life, as people grow and mature. I can hardly wait to teach my kids to skate and shoot a puck.


But what can we do in Spring? Well, we can watch as the spring snow storms devastate our hopes of planting an early garden. We can check and recheck the calendar, and curse the weather, never remembering that it is always like this up here in Edmonton at this time of year!

But I do like it when, sometime in late May or June, the tulips and daffodils, the hyacinths and narcissus poke their beautiful heads through the dirt, and sometimes snow to reveal their optimistic beauty.

My mom, in anticipation of Spring, and Easter forced these beauties to grow in her dining room.




Even a hater of Spring such as I has to admit that these bring a glimmer of hope and excitement, anticipation that we can finally shed our winter layers and feel the warm sun on our faces again.



I have to admit that they do stir romantic thoughts of Spring.

In the meantime, at the risk of falling flat on my face, it is best to get to bed early, since morning will be arriving an hour early tomorrow.

xo Jo

No comments: