Breathe . . .

Breathe deeply. Enjoy every nuance of this new season we deserve.

Spring is in its infancy, my friends. Time to roust and look for a place where the sun shines on your face. Work yourself out of that indentation on the couch that's been deepening since November.

The time for moaning about five months of weary weather is finished. Cheer now the seven glorious months ahead!

The blooms of spring that speak to the coming warmth of summer. We are sure to get another visit or two of weather deemed distasteful, but the persistence of this past Michigan winter will most assuredly give way to a refreshing new season.

We have been beaten by the clouds, the sleet, the downright miserable weather. The fruits of our labor? The glory of spring!

No more internet Sudoku or Scrabble; log off of Facebook and Farmville. You can leave those virtual worlds behind until next winter. Time to enjoy friends you can reach out and touch. Time for real people. Real gardens.

Getting through the isolation of winter is no small task for some of us. A daffodil breaking through the wood chips in my yard parallels what spring means for many Michiganders. The rusty color of the wood chips makes me smile. The flower has made it through to Spring's doorstep.

Television gives way to bike rides.

As inviting as the fireplace has been, it pales in comparison to the fire pit out back that will warm us for the next seven months.

Boy, does a s'more sound good! Soon I will be making them with my grandchildren 'round a bonfire on Drummond. They'll eat. We'll laugh. And the days will get longer.

Green grass. Fresh smells. Wide smiles.

Sometimes I think I make too much of the change of seasons. But there never really is too much.

It is time to breathe the deep breath of Spring!

Smile, breathe and go slowly.

~Thich Nhat Hanh