The Glory of Spring

Ginter Botanical Garden.  Copyright 2012: singeronthesand

The moon keeps track of the seasons,

the sun is in charge of each day.

Psalm 104:19 [The Message]

This spring has been, without a doubt, the most amazing season of recent memory.  This is, of course, Virginia, where the weather is as changeable as a woman's shoes, but this spring has been more spectacular than most.  We have had highs of 90 degrees in March, and lows of 39 degrees in late April.  It has not been unusual to have a difference of 20-30 degrees from yesterday to today.  I turned off my heating system in early March and have used neither heat nor cooling since.  Some days it has been a little warm in the house, and yesterday morning it was just plain frigid, but adjusting the comfort level with ceiling fans or extra layers of clothing has saved me a bundle of money in energy costs.  Yesterday it was 58º, tomorrow it will be 83º, and Sunday it will be back to 56º.

Everything outside blossomed early.  Daffodils are long since gone, as are the tulips. I have blueberries on my bushes, strawberries fully ripened, and good-sized green fruit on my cherry tree.   Last evening I spent a delightful few hours digging in a flowerbed softened by the weekend's rain, mucking in the dirt and loving every minute of it.  The only thing lacking was an outdoor radio to add some music to my labors.

Antonio Vivaldi was a red headed virtuous violinist living in Venice in the 1700's.  Vivaldi was a composer as well as a performer, and in 1723, he composed a set of four concertos titled The Four Seasons.  Each concerto has a matching sonnet, possibly also written by the composer, describing the delights of that particular season.  The sonnet for Spring is in three sections:

Allegro
Springtime is upon us. 
The birds celebrate her return with festive song,
and murmuring streams are softly caressed by the breezes.
Thunderstorms, those heralds of Spring, roar, 

casting their dark mantle over heaven;
Then they die away to silence, 

and the birds take up their charming songs once more.

Largo
On the flower-strewn meadow, 

with leafy branches rustling overhead, 

the goat-herd sleeps, his faithful dog beside him.

Allegro
Led by the festive sound of rustic bagpipes, 

nymphs and shepherds lightly dance 

beneath the brilliant canopy of spring.

If you have a few moments today, click on the link below, turn up the volume, and let Vivaldi's sublime composition La Primavera (Spring) be the background inspiration for your spring day.