So What's So Special About Spring?

Yea! It's here -- the first touches of Spring!

Last week, I took a hike around a small lake in a wooded area. The sunshine made me forget that I was wearing a winter coat, hat, scarf, and gloves to ward off the cold temps. I, along with other people on the trail, smiled as the sunshine hit our faces -- our noses reddish from the cool temps. We "ooh-ed" and "aah-ed" with each sighting of impending Spring -- a bird, a plant, a sound.

I began to wonder why we were to enthralled. What's so special about early spring? Let's be honest -- if these temperatures occur a few months from now, we would be mumbling and grumbling about the "freezing weather" as we pull fleece-lined sweatsuits over our shorts.

Except for a single pair of migrating Mute Swans and a small group of Bufflehead Ducks off in the distance, most of the birds there are visible all year long. The trees and shrubs were still dormant and bare. The only plant that signaled the seasonal change was a half-opened Skunk Cabbage reaching out of the swampy water like a mysterious pink claw.

The grass, though no longer snow covered, was brown and dormant, with barely a tint of green here and there.

I wondered that if Spring came came after Summer, rather than before, would we even be excited about it. Perhaps God designed the intense, brilliant golds and reds of Autumn as a treat to ease us through the waning days of Summer so that we would not too quickly dread the impending cold and challenges of winter. If Autumn came before Summer, and Spring with its pastels came after Summer, would we be as enthralled with Spring's return?

So what is it about early Spring that makes us so excited. It's HOPE! Late Spring, when the bulbs and flowering trees are finally full and the grass vibrantly green, is treasure for itself. But for early Spring, the joy is in what it represents -- survival of the difficulties of winter, and hope for the warmth and yields to come.

The Bible says, "God will strengthen your heart, all people who hope in the LORD" (Psalm 31:24).

Spring, with its message of hope, reminds us that however drab and dread the winters of life, that the person who trust in the Lord has hope for the future.

Yes, early Spring is a glorious time!

Visit to Mount Vernon

George Washington slept here -- really!

Of course he did; it was his home -- Mount Vernon in Virginia.

Mount Vernon is more than the regal plantation manor sitting on a bluff overlooking the Potomac River. It also is acres of fields that Washington farmed, the barns and out-buildings -- and from modern times -- museum and learning center.

But Mount Vernon is more than a place -- it is a symbol. A symbol of a time when people were willing to sacrifice all for a county yet-to-be, of men and women setting aside personal welfare and wealth for the well-being of the whole.

Washington's home would be a beautiful place to see even if it's past owner had not been so famous and important, but the history of the man who owned it is just as inspiring. Touring the property and reviewing events of his life is a humbling experience. Here was a man who thought of himself primarily as a landed farmer, not a statesman. He was a humble man and refused to be made king of the victorious American colonies. He preferred his title of General rather than President, and yet, chose to not retain power over the army once its goal had been achieved.

I visited Mount Vernon on President's Day weekend. As I stood in front of his burial vault in front of his opened tomb, I wondered how many present-day politicians and leaders will be remembered for their examples of humility and self-sacrifice.

MOUNT VERNON video