I Get Spring Fever

Seems I have always been prone to Spring Fever. Reminiscing now, sitting in class during elementary school, staring outside those old metal framed windows, as the world seemed to become more alive on a daily basis. The wooded area behind the school would become thicker by the day and those big old trees that winters’ chill had affected for too long, suddenly sprang to life with differing shades of green.

It always seemed as if the world was waking up and everywhere you looked new life was beginning. From the birds’ nests that seemed to be everywhere to a mother hen and her newborn baby chicks walking around the farmyard, life begins anew every spring. I cannot help but wonder if spring is God’s way of showing us just a glimpse of what it must have been like during Creation.

There is something magical about spring, and it starts with the odors that fill the air. Winter air can be extremely lackluster. The only real odors I remember as a child, were the smells of wood or even coal burning in a fireplace or woodstove. In the spring, though there are unlimited fragrances that seem to awaken the senses and refresh the soul. Just as the honeybee seeks out their nectar, we must stop and take in the aromas from the beautiful flowers that seem to pop up everywhere.

As the warmth of spring awakens the bears from their hibernation and they seek to explore the world again, spring makes bodies just have to get out and explore all nature has to offer. How I remember the anticipation of being able to go outside and not be shivering and cold. Sometimes it amazes me just how quickly we can shed our heavy coats and layers of clothing for short pants and short-sleeve shirts on the first warm day of spring.

In the distance, I hear a tractor starting that has set all winter. Soon the smell of freshly turned earth and diesel exhaust will fill the air as the old farmer starts plowing under the death of winter and prepares the ground for planting. Then in what to some will seem like an eternity, and to others too quickly, the earth that has slept all winter will burst forth with new life and summers’ bounty.

The creeks, that on many a winter day had ice around the edges, are now flowing with crystal clear water as the snow on top of the mountains begins melting and finding its way down into the valleys. In only a short time young boys and girls will be swinging from that old rope swing and falling right into the middle of the stream, and a father will teach a child to fish on its banks for the first time. A short distance away a young couple will have their first picnic under the same old tree that parents and grandparents before spent their time courting.

Down the road, a congregation is working hard to prepare the church house and its grounds to celebrate the greatest event in history. Soon the entire community will dress in their finest spring attire and attend Easter Sunday services. There we will celebrate the ultimate symbol of the earth springing forth with new life, because on this day we will be celebrating the resurrection of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ!

Perhaps it is fitting that I get spring fever, because spring is about new beginnings. Spring reminds us that just as the world awakens from the deep sleep of winter’s death, in the not too distant future, one morning, all of us who believe and accept Jesus Christ as our Savior will join him in that land where spring will be eternal and death will be no more. Happy Spring everyone!