First Day of Spring?
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Age 7 - Look Mommy . . . It's a Robin . . . It's the 1st sign of SpRIng.
Age 17 - In the SprinG, A Young Man's Fancy Turns to . . . Look Mommy, It's a pretty girl . . . Must be SprinG.
Have you seen the 10-day Weather Channel forecast? Not exactly SpRinG-like.
OK . . . Here's the official scoop about the first day of Spring - March 20, 2005.
First thing you have to know when you write a column about spring is when you're supposed to capitalize the word Spring. I've never ever been sure . . . for as long as I can remember . . . So the trick (at least for me) is to keep alternating the spelling of SpriNg. And then hope no one notices . . . or at least loses track. I've found this also works to camouflage a lack of spelling expertise when it come to WInteR, SuMMeR and faLL also.
Now for the official stuff: The SPRING solstice or vernal equinox is the day in sPrinG when daytime and nighttime are of equal length. This tends to happen around March 21st of each year.
This special day has been celebrated by mankind for thousands of years. Even the earliest civilizations kept track of the seasons and stars, to help plan their planting and gathering schedules. For many different societies, the SPRIng solstice marked the end of winter and the approach of sPRing, fertility, and fresh food.
Even as Christianity moved into the world and took over many traditional practices, it absorbed the SPrinG fertility celebrations into the new Easter practices. For example, the actual date that Easter is celebrated each year is based on the vernal equinox. Starting with the vernal equinox, you wait for the first full moon. The next Sunday after that is when Easter is held.
Traditional symbols of the spRing equinox include signs of fertility - fresh flowers, rabbits, chickens, eggs, and the color green.
- Sign of Fertility - Look, there's a pretty girl.
Rabbits - Where did all those rabbits come from, Dad?
Chickens/Eggs - McDonald's Bacon Egg and Cheese Biscuit.
Color Green - Green is what happens to beer and Shamrock Shakes on Saint Patrick's Day.
Every year in Michigan, the general population gets damn impatient about waiting for SPRing to "sprung." You know the old poem . . . "Spring has sprung . . . the Grass isRiz . . . I wonder where the flowers Iz . . .
So based on this kind of poetic license, we can easily see how impatient Michiganders can become.
There's something about March 1 (every year) that gets everyone all cranked up about warm weather. It NEVER happens. When is the last time you wore shorts and a t-shirt to the St. Patrick's Day Parade in Bay City? (Drunk doesn't count) Every year, it's either snowing, blowing a wind chill under 15 degrees or it's something like today's parade . . . gray, damp, cold, snow and slush on the ground . . . etc, etc.
Another oft cited harbinger of SPRINg is the return of animals to well knowngeographic places. In much the same way that college students return to Daytona Beach, or Fort Lauderdale, Florida for SpRInG break, other animals also (on cue) return to lesser known tourist havens.Hinckley, Ohio: The good folks of Hinckley, Ohio celebrate the arrival of spring when the Turkey Buzzards return from their winter stomping grounds in the southern United States and points beyond. Thousands of the birds arrive on or about the 15th of March and set up housekeeping in Hinckley. How many of you have ever been too Hinckley, Ohio on March 15? Raise your hands! Not Too Many!
Capistrano, California: Everyone knows about the swallows and Capistrano . . . Don't they?
The miracle of the "Swallows" of Capistrano takes place each year at the Mission San Juan Capistrano, on March 19th, St. Joseph's Day.
As the little birds wing their way back to the most famous Mission in California, the village of San Juan Capistrano takes on a fiesta air and the visitors from all parts of the world, and all walks of life, gather in great numbers to witness the "miracle" of the return of the swallows.
Each year the "Scout Swallows" precede the main flock by a few days and it seems to be their chief duty to clear the way for the main flock to arrive at the "Old Mission" of Capistrano. Capistrano is not in San Juan (Like many think) but is inCalifornia. Be sure to make travel plans now for next sprING. Everybody's going to be there.
Harley Finkman's Back Yard: But the most famous harbinger of SpRIng is right here in Bay City. Right here on the East Side, near Harley Finkman's (It might be Frinkmen) dad's place over by Carroll Park. I think one of the garden clubs plant flowers there every year. We all know that SprinG is rightaround the corner when the snow begins to melt and we can finally see the tip of the sign in Harley's back yard. Yes Sir! When you can finally read the sign . . . SPRING is certainly close at hand.
Footnote: It's the darn groundhog's fault. Every February, the groundhog sees his shadow and we're cursed with a cold St. Pat's Parade.
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O. J. Cunningham |
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