Magical March & the Great Melt

At least in your yard you have a modicum of control; plus spider spotting

If you live in the mountains, March is the time of purple pasque flowers gently pushing their way up through a blanket of snow. Elsewhere, spring has begun stretching out its embrace in full force, with tender emerald leaves sprouting from branches, and yellow trumpet flowers heralding the sun’s warm return. This morning we awoke to the sound of cardinals, having what sounded like a sci-fi phaser fight (pzheew, pzheew, pzheww).

We recently visited the Harry P. Leu Gardens in Orlando. The yellow blooms are on a trumped flower tree, but I’m not sure what the white ones are. I love the texture of the Spanish moss thrown in.

But it’s difficult to keep the beauty of this sacred month from being tamped down with the panic that’s settled into the pit of my stomach. A yellow lab I once knew swallowed a tennis ball, and I imagine she felt something similar. Most of my conversations these days revolve around the phrase “I just don’t know what more we can possibly do”; so here’s an inspiring story of the act of resistance of one young woman, the now former snow reporter for Sugarbush ski area.

For those of us lucky enough to have yards, a windowsill, or a community garden, there is also much we can do. Bees and caterpillars will be emerging soon, and birds are already migrating. They are all concerned with this moment, and not weighed down with political affairs. So to help them in the here-and-now, empty bird houses promptly and clean out bird baths. It’s okay to rake leaves off of early bloomers, like bulbs, but for the rest of the yard, this is when procrastination pays. Delay cleaning up most of the dried leaves and stalks until it’s consistently been above 50 degrees, otherwise you risk disturbing beneficial insects overwintering there.

Not sure who this larva (caterpillar) will turn into, but we came across him at a campground in New Mexico. Love his sparkly end.

March is also a good time to start seedlings inside, and to do a bit of spring cleaning around the house to refresh the spirit. Speaking of that, another mood raiser is to keep a naturalist observation and/or sketch notebook. Write down what animals you see, what plants are blooming, and other happenings and thoughts. Over time it will make you feel more connected with and observant of the outside world — and that connection brings both mental and physical health benefits. Over time, your notebook might also become a valuable scientific resource, to document how nature is changing in this Brave New World.

I usually get a little more esoteric with this newsletter, but I know we’re already overwhelmed with thinking about all of the crap going on in our failing country, and its dwindling values of kindness and acceptance, not to mention its collective lack basic self-preservation instinct.

So, for that, let me just say: Be aware. Try to stay in touch with what is going on. Protest for injustices, and especially our public lands, because we’re on the verge of a major land grab. Once the Endangered Species Act and similar safeguards are undermined, our public lands will be sold to the wealthiest class, who intend to scrape them off, pave them over, fence them in, cut them down, and dig them up. The powers that be have been salivating over that for decades, and now the leash is off. And for those in the west, consider subscribing to the High Country News, an excellent source of journalism.

The March for Science in 2016. We traveled there becuase we felt desperate to make our voices heard. Now that seems like the ‘good ol’ days’ compared with what’s coming down the pike.

But also, take breaks so you can stay sane. It’s imperative to find time to laugh, to walk, to sing and dance, to meditate, and to spread kindness. Some of our greatest joys come during the times of our greatest strife. Because that is when we are really present for life. Think of the Vietnam War and Civil Rights era. Those who went through it have told me that the only way cope with the horrors was to balance them with as much creativity and playfulness as they could muster.

Make your inner light something that no oppression can extinguish. Spend as much time as you can with loved ones.

I don’t know whose photo this is, so it’s lacking proper attribution. But may we all be able to find these moments!

And go spider spotting. We recently did this while visiting a naturalist friend in the Florida Keys. Pointed at just the right angle, we could see what looked like dozens of green dewdrops — which were actually the eyes of countless spiders. Wherever you live, chances are you can go spider spotting, too.

A wolf spider, Florida Keys style, from our spider-spotting adventure.

And finally, here is our family calendar for March. See you in April.