An American Robin pulls a worm from the earth on the first day of spring, Thursday, March 20, 2025, at Frances Slocum State Park in Kingston Twp. While robins don’t always migrate and can be found in Pennsylvania year-round, their presence is seen by many as a sign of the arrival of the season.
Elizabeth Baumeister | Times Leader file photo
It ends today. No more watching the days get shorter, the temperatures get colder or the risk of serious snowstorms get higher. This is the eve of the spring equinox, after which we start to see the sun hang out a little longer each day, right up to the summer solstice and the longest day of the year.
Sure, there will almost certainly be some more snow someday in the next month or so. Contrary to popular hope, it’s pretty common around here to see the white stuff in April. But it’s unusual to see a lot of it, and even rarer to see it stick around very long.
And yes, if you’re a gardener eager to get your tomato plants into the soil, you may be forced to champ at the bit until sometime in May, just to be sure Jack Frost won’t come nipping at your buds. But accept that for what it is: a healthy dose of anticipation, a certainty that new flowers and fresh-as-can-be veggies are not merely coming, but their arrival is inevitable.
As Ralph Waldo Emerson said, “Adopt the pace of nature; her secret is patience.” Or to quote the Bard himself, “April hath put a spirit of youth in everything.”
Surely after this winter, we deserve spring. We paid for it, courtesy of a surprising number of days with temperatures below—sometimes well below—normal. We spent more than our usual share of days stuck inside because, frankly, it was just too cold to venture into the near-arctic air at times. Even if you like the snow through a set of skis, or by building a fort for kids, or careening down a hill on a sled, there were days the wind chill could whip the joy right out of such activities.
Before you know it, you’ll see some spring flowers blooming, trees sprouting leaves, and geese honking their way north. You’ll smell food grilling from a neighbor’s yard, or even fire up your own cookout. It will get warm enough to air out the house, maybe do some of that needed spring cleaning, or just lounge under the sun or stare up at the night sky.
Doubtless, the rest of March will offer some unsavory weather; it always does, but it can only delay the warmth, not stop it. The patios and decks will beckon more and more often. The woods will invite a walk, and the trails encourage a bike ride. Parks will become accessible to everyone again, not just the hardy adventurers. Birds will flutter into yards, chirping and singing.
We’re not convinced that, as the saying goes, “Hope springs eternal.” Sometimes it just doesn’t seem possible to stay upbeat. But if there is a time of year when hope is easiest to embrace, it’s spring.
So maybe raise a glass tonight to toast the end of winter, and start tomorrow with a fresh approach to a fresh, new season.
This evening, go to bed knowing winter is ending.
Tomorrow, go out and play.
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