Tuesday, April 28, 2009

The Green of it All

This is one of my favorite times of the year. This time of the year means so many different things to me. It means warmer weather. It means longer days. It means eating outside. It means sun on my bare arms. After being stuck inside all winter and looking at browns and greys, we just want to do something, anything, just to be outside. Stein and I have been getting some things together in the yard while the weather has been nice. (We still need to do more, like plant flowers and pull weeds.)
But this time of the year also means that all kinds of things are coming out of the ground, or branches, or buildings. Tulips and daffodils are the first brave ones, coming out despite some cold temperatures that continue to linger. Then there are the buds on branches of trees, first looking like bumps and then like fuzz as they start to strut their bright green color. And people come out of buildings to eat at outdoor restaurants, sit on blankets at the park, or just walk around the neighborhood.
One of my favorite things during this time is the bright greens that you see. On my way to and from Chicago this weekend, I saw all kinds of shades of green on the sides of the highway. It made me reminiscent of Ireland, where the shades of green are so unique. I remember flying into Dublin, where the green grass on the ground was so bright it looked fake.

This green comes out overnight, it seems. One day there is a brown tree standing on the corner, and the next day it is covered in bright green buds ready to burst into full leaves any minute. The same thing happened with the seeds I planted in my newspaper "pots". On Friday when I left for Chicago, there were some small sprouts in the pots. On Sunday when I got home, I saw this:

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