Fresh Air

I try to not get too excited.  Not too much anticipation.  No expectations, for sure.  But ...

It is the beginning of March

 and the sun is out

 and it is WARM!  

Ok, not entirely warm.  Mostly in the high 40s and low 50s, but really folks, for us that temperature is now blessedly warm.  I see people out in shorts and sweaters and I think ... spring has got to be here soon!

It has been a difficult winter for me.  I feel like I have been in hibernation through most of it.  Maybe it was a normal reaction ... a time to just be and to heal and to assess.  Maybe it was a kind of grieving time for what I lost.  The loss is larger than just the death of my mother, but that is a topic for another time.  But I can't help wondering ... would I have hibernated like this if her death happened in summer?  Was her death the straw that finally broke the camel's back - so to speak?  Was my reaction timed more to the seasons than by life events?  Questions that I have pondered in my quiet times.  Answers that don't really need to be discovered.

I have always loved winter, but this winter has been so very cold and dark and snowy.  There is a ton of salt all over our environment to combat the ice - glad for the chemical melting, I guess, but the salt that is left behind clouds everything with a gray with film.

Yes, this winter was one to forget.

Official spring is just weeks away.  And I for one cannot wait.  Our whole world needs a good bath of spring rain to wash away winter.  We need the warmth to wake up the plants and melt away the snow FINALLY.  I greatly desire to pack away my shovels and boots.  I need to be able to step outside and take deep breaths of fresh air without risking frozen lungs.

Yes, I am ready ready ready for spring.

This spring holds many promises of fun things.  Two cousins weekends are planned: one in Pennsylvania soon and one at my house in May for The Maryland Sheep and Wool Festival - "high holy days" for us fiber obsessed folks.  Time with cousins always pumps up my joy of living.

My house is undergoing a reorganization and decluttering - a sure sign that I am waking out of slumber.  After 2 days of house focused activity, I feel lighter already!! I can't wait to finally open the windows and fill my lighter space with fresh air.

This spring I celebrate 68 years on this earth.  Each birthday is a gratitude-inducing event now-a-days.  Many people don't make it this far in life.  I have seen the road ahead of me through my mother's own aging. It was an up close and personal journey.  Today, however, I am healthy and blessed in so many ways.  My birthdays always remind me of that fact. My new motto is to keep focused on today and let tomorrow take care of itself.  A time to rejoice for sure.

AND I can finally get outside and walk and walk and walk.  My FitBit friends ... look out.  I am going to pass you in the Leaderboard!  No need to fear icy patches, snow filled sidewalks and frost bitten noses.  Time to get these nearly 68 year old bones moving - time to stretch out these muscles and make the focus about me! (Me in the lead on the FitBit Leaderboard, of course.)  :-)

Yes, this spring holds many wonderful promises.

So everyone, now it is time for a deep breath of fresh air!!

So what are your spring plans like?

PS - if you are a FitBit user and want to be Friends at the online website ... just send me an email.  I would love to keep everyone moving along with me.