Just Out of Reach

Does anyone else look out the window in the morning while carefully chugging their first cup of coffee while the kids are eating their Cocoa Puffs (one at a time) and waffle and sniping at one another or giggling uncontrollably and NOT eating said Puffs and waffle and think, "When? When will Spring weather allow me to open the windows or better yet, sit outside with my face turned up toward the sun?" Am I the only one who wonders this? Clearly I'm not. All I have to do is sign on to Facebook and listen to rapture over the sunshine or laments over the cold rain or, dear God, SNOW, and realize that.

It's coming. I know it is. It has to. We just need to be patient. How's everybody with patience? Good? Yeah, me either! But what choice do we have? We could bitch and complain and yell at our kids or flip people off on the road or walk around with a sneer on our face and just wait. Or...we could put on a thick sweater, warm coat and gloves and head outside and pretend! Why not? Why can't we do all the things we do in warmer weather in not-so warmer weather? Why can't we ride our bikes? Why can't we play monkey-in-the-middle or soccer in the front yard? Within two minutes we'll be peeling off scarves and unzipping coats working up a good old-fashioned play-like-you're-six years old sweat.

So just do it. Do it if you've got a couple of kids laying around but do it even if you don't! Go work on your boat...Summer's right around the corner. Work on your tan (you think the sun won't tint you in March?) Make a little fire in your fire pit and roast a couple of marshmallows; within a couple of months it'll be too hot to even contemplate that!

It's coming. Spring. Summer. Fireflies. Sweating. Sunburn. Mosquitoes. See? Nothing's perfect; it just seems that way when it's only inches from reach!

~Eileen Cassidy Bishop 3/29/11