Early Spring

The first bloom of spring. Always a welcome site. Always something to bring a smile on a pasty pale winter face. This year's first bloom in my garden occurred last week,  March 6th. Now, after a long hard winter a first bloom, especially an early one would be a huge relief, a sign of warm days to come. 

This year, the winter was, well, not winter. It was warm, and instead of snow we got a lot of rain. Spring flooding will not be a worry. There is no snow to melt off, there is no ice in the rivers to cause ice jams. It made for a wonderful winter of little shoveling and hardly ever wearing a winter coat. Nothing to complain about. 

Perhaps something to worry about though. Last year it was March 19th when I posted about the first bloom of spring. Here it is only March 12th and that first bloom is surrounded by many buddies. Daffodils are about to join them in the warmth and sunshine. The obvious worry, for the flowers, is what if we get a a hard freeze? Which in a normal winter, I would expect to happen. I would expect that these blooms would be blanketed with snow at some point. That is part of the beauty of crocuses though, they are tough little buggers.

 The worries of this unusual winter and spring, are more long term. If it is 80 degrees on March 12th in the Midwest, what is it going to be like come July? Are we in for a drought? Is it going to be 100 degrees on Mother's Day, 110 degrees on Father's day, and snowing on the Forth of July? What is going on with our weather? I know that all seems a little absurd. Is it though? Climate change, though heavily disputed by the great geniuses of our time, Rush Limbaugh, Rick Santorum and many other like minded folks, seems to be real.

Is it a side affect of burning fossil fuels? Is it a normal shift that occurs fairly regularly in our planets cycle. Is it Mother Nature going through menopause? Because if it is that, I can relate. Oh, boy I can relate......

 I guess the thing to ask, is, are we as a people prepared for what the climate and weather are going to throw at us. And if, just if, the REAL scientists are right, and our activities as humans are a part of what is going on, or accelerating the normal cycle of the Earth's climate, would it really kill us to change our ways, even just a little.

Some rant and rave about doing something as little as changing the kind  of light bulb they use. I'm not the biggest fan of the color of the energy efficient light bulbs. They save me a negligible amount of money on my light bill. If it is one small thing I can do to use a little less energy, what is the big deal? The real big deal is that if more and more people use them, then more and more energy is saved, less and less fossil fuels are burned. How can that be a bad thing?

 I don't get the politics of it all. I don't get why people don't understand that doing things that are good for the Earth in turn are good for us. After all, the earth feeds us, shelters us, warms us, and cools us. If we don't take care of it, I'm pretty darn sure it could do us all in and start all over. It did it to the dinosaurs, why not us?

Now, I'm not saying that you have to change your light bulbs if you really cannot stand the curly Q ones. If their color is just too irritating to you then make your own choice. Just try to find something else to do that can make a small difference. Plant a tree in your yard. Take a shorter shower. Wash your truck once a month instead of every week. If you have recycling available to you take advantage of it, you are paying for it anyway.

Is it too late? I hope not, we really have a beautiful planet. It gives us so much. Our flowers, trees and green grass are just the beginning. If we ruin the planet, I think they will find a way back, will we?