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THAT GOOD TIME OF YEAR

by Tumbleweed Smith

I looked out the window and it was spring. The lawns were coming back to life and leaves were appearing on previously bare branches. The mesquite trees were beginning to show their special shade of green.

Most people's favorite season is the one in which they were born. I was born in late spring so the season of renewal is my favorite time of year. I love to see the earth come back to life, when it purges itself from winter's darkness and feels cleansed, blessed again. It's when we witness the season of hope.

Spring is when you want to get out and do things you may have never done before, like grabbing a cane fishing pole and a can of worms and going to the lake; or just going outside to watch a bug for about an hour; or just stretching out and staring at your shoes while you contemplate things.

You wear fewer clothes in the spring. Shorts and t-shirts replace sweaters, coats, hats, scarves and gloves. And you might even go around with no socks or shoes.

The outside beckons and you think about taking a walk. The bicycle that's been unused for months awaits a rider. You feel the tires to make sure they're ready. You take it outside to test everything. The fresh air makes you feel frisky and you become a child again.

You get out the ice cream freezer and clean the barbecue grill and imagine how the fruits of summer will taste. The earth warms. The sky boils. The wind ceases its relentless howling and settles down to a gentle breeze.

No season offers more promise than springtime. And no place shows off its spring wardrobe any better than Texas. When it's springtime in Texas, fields of blue and yellow and red appear and the air is scented with wildflower perfume. Seeing Texas in the spring is like seeing New England in the fall. We experience the colors and our lives are enriched. Flowers are arranged between the cactus and rocks in natural bouquets. Texas is the birthplace of spring.

The silence of the prairie is broken with the piercing sound of birds. Welcome to the spring, they seem to say. And they show off their colors, too. Mocking birds flash their white tail feathers while cardinals and cedar waxwings provide a spectacular aerial display. A hawk catches a wind current and glides gracefully in the perfect blue of an April sky. The miracle of spring is amazing to observe.

The 24-hour celestial parade is a wondrous event. We wake up to a dawn of sunrise pink. Later the golden sun illumines the clouds. By mid afternoon they become active and bounce around like giant white pillows. At sundown the sky is streaked with crimson and gold. And darkness brings its own special magic. Spring makes you glad to be alive.

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