New Life

On this mild, spring evening I realize that all around me nature takes two forms – the wild and the tame. Everywhere new life is beginning to sprout. Directly behind me are various trees with green tips beginning to mask the dull brown bark of winter. Beneath my feet vivacious green grass struggles to emerge through the remaining dead, dry leaves of fall and winter. At various places in my yard – lining the deck, under the tree directly in front of me, and even at both sides of the swing I am sitting on – pre-planted flowers start to tamely grow where my mother had planted them years ago. Slowly the remnants of winter are being engulfed by the birth of spring.

Across the street to my left the farmer’s field is even different. The shattered remains of last year’s corn harvest have disappeared under the machine ploughed soil where the farmer is preparing to plant a new crop. The trees that line the back of the fields are now beginning to hide the school and surrounding houses. No longer can I unintentionally spy on the neighbors living on the other side of the farmer’s field.

In the wind that caresses my face I smell the freshness of new life. The scent of budding flowers with the pollen that tickles my nose overwhelms my senses. I smell the freshly mowed grass from my over-eager neighbor who is obviously anxious for the weekly ritual that lawn care requires.

My ears are filled with the sounds of spring. The hidden birds chirp merrily in the trees conversing with long lost friends who migrated south for the winter and have now returned for the summer months yet to come. I swear I even hear a lonesome cricket crying out for its companions as the evening sun prepares to dip below the never ending horizon. The barrenness of winter is finally being replaced by the plentitude of spring, and the once resting nature is springing to new life once again.

Profoundly Nature

Defining nature is an impossible task. I used to think that nature was anything untouched by human hands. It was something that was pure and genuine. I have read things where the city is nature, the human is nature, and the country is nature. I’m beginning to think that nature is one of those terms that will never truly be defined.

Even through the study of a single place nature still remains undefined. I feel closer or more aware of nature then I have in the past. I never really stopped long enough to take notice of anything. That is one thing that this class has taught me. Even by observing the same place every week I have noticed things that I have never noticed before. It has caused me to remember what nature meant to me as a child and to see how that perception has changed with age and maturity.

One thing that I have learned is that nature is a mystery and a blessing all tied into one. It is a calming presence. It makes everything else seem so trivial or simple. I don’t know if anyone else has noticed, but people tend to make life more difficult than it has to be. For me, nature is a reminder that life isn’t as completed as I sometimes think.

I would really like to take my observations and my insights from the last several months and turn them into a reflective manuscript. I found it easy to write about nature and its influences on me and my life. It is also something that everyone can relate to and something that people need to become more aware of in life. It is something that people take for granted that needs to be rediscovered and appreciated.

Daffodils

When I read Becca's blog, http://backyardtransliteration.blogspot.com/2009/04/dancing-with-daffodils.html, William Wordsworth's poem popped into my head, “The Daffodils”. Maybe this is because my students have recently read that poem, or maybe because it is one of my favorites. This particular poem always pops into my head around this time of year.

I picture a scene with daffodils that sway, dance, and move in the wind. It is such a refreshing image as the dreariness of winter vanishes once again. Daffodils have become my hope for the arrival of spring.

To be honest, I cannot look at a daffodil without seeing it as a living and breathing object. They are so cheery – their yellow glow pulling smiles from all who notice. Their fragrance chases out the stagnant air of winter. Their durability even in the face of a last minute, surprise snowfall providing encouragement for all to hang on just a little bit longer.

Maybe it’s the eternal optimist coming out or maybe it’s the childlike eagerness anxiously waiting for summer to finally come, but the daffodils help to sooth my mind. They remind me that there is more to life than waking up, going to work, running numerous errands, laundry, cleaning, dishes, then finally sleep once again. The daffodils force me to realize that life is more than stress if I simply step back and breathe.