Thursday, March 20, 2014

For, lo, the winter is past!

For lo, the winter is past, the rain [snow?] is over and gone; the flowers appear on the earth; the time of the singing of birds is come, and the voice of the turtle is heard in our land.
—Song of Solomon 2:11-12

Maple buds spring out

Several years ago, NPR broadcast a story about the signs and sounds of spring's approach.

One such was the vernal experience of a small resort town, whose residents, somnambulant in winter months, would be awakened to spring's imminence by the mini-klaxons of SUV proximity alarms. It was the cacophony of automobile-tethered tourists swarming back for warmer weather, like noisy swallows to San Juan Capistrano, but without the majesty of wings on the wind.

Well, the March Equinox occured today at 12:57 pm EDT, and spring 2014 has sprung. None too loud, and none too soon.
An equinox occurs twice a year (around 20 March and 22 September), when the plane of Earth's equator passes the center of the Sun. At this time the tilt of the Earth's axis is inclined neither away from nor towards the Sun. ... In the Northern Hemisphere, the astronomical March equinox is taken to mark the first day of spring
Wikipedia

Of course, anyone knows that the true revelation of spring's arrival is the return of baseball. Opening Day is less than two weeks away.

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