Outside, Part 1: The Big Thaw

Ah, outside. I love outside. In fact, when I was a baby, “outside” was one of my first words. My mom says that I would stand at a window, my hands and nose pressed to the glass, begging, “Outside? Outside?” My husband will tell you that, after all these years, not much has changed.

It’s easy to make me happy: just take me outside, especially when the weather is beautiful. It’s fresh, it’s free, and it’s fun! And now that we’re enjoying some slightly warmer weather, I’m sure all my fellow northerners are getting pretty excited, too. After all, it’s beginning to look a lot like springtime! And as this week held the first official day of spring, I thought I’d post a little something to celebrate a few things I love about The Big Thaw.

The Sunshine

Personally, I’ve found that the past two Michigan winters had plenty of sunny days to keep me happy, but I’d lived in South Texas for 11 years before that, so maybe I’m just not sick of northern winters yet. But even though I don’t hate winter, I sure am excited about spring! After a long, cold winter, there’s nothing like spring sunshine to warm the soil and the soul.

Springtime sunshine means lighter jackets, fewer layers, and overall less hassle when you want to go outside. For example, when I want to take a walk in the winter, I have to put on my thermal pants and sweat pants; my thin socks and thick socks; my tee shirt, thermal shirt, and sweatshirt; my boots, coat, hat, scarf, and mittens. And now that we’ve added a baby to all this preparation, it hardly seems worth it. But in springtime—ah, springtime—you can toss on a light jacket, some tennies, and maybe a hat, and you’re all set. The sun will do the rest.

And now that daylight savings time is here, we’ve scored a whole extra hour of sunshine in the evening! Add to that the fact that we’re gaining a few minutes of light every day, and you have the perfect recipe for enjoying these rays even longer. It does my heart good to look out the window at 8:00 P.M. and still see the remnants of sunset behind the trees. It reminds me that summer is just around the corner, and that, my friends, is a wonderful thing.

The Smells

In winter, many of the outside smells are either muted or gone. Sure, you’ll smell the cozy tang of a woodfire or the crisp scent of snow. You might even get lucky enough to smell some fir trees now and then, but there’s not much else going on in the olfactory department. Maybe that’s why the smells of springtime are enough to send my heart sky high with bliss. I’m not even kidding. On the first warm day this year, I got to take a walk through a little nature center down the road from us, and I was nearly giddy with happiness. I kept sniffing and sniffing, taking in all the smells of spring. What kinds of smells, you ask? Well, I’ll tell you.

One of my favorite scents is warm, thawing earth. After so many months of frozen ground, the smell of dirt is music to my nose. It smells so rich, so hopeful, so full of potential and promise. Smelling the first days of thawed dirt gives me a glimpse of what Noah must have felt like when the dove brought back the olive branch: there is hope for life.

Along with the smell of dirt is the smell of damp leaves. Yes, I know it’s just decaying plant matter, but it smells beautiful to me. I love the sweet, spicy scent of dry leaves in the fall, but the scent of warm, wet leaves in the spring is just as nice. They smell earthy and comforting.

And finally, I love the smell of growing things. This year, it’s too early for me to have smelled anything growing yet, but I know it’s coming. Soon the little sprouts of grass will peek tentatively through the dirt, and the tiny leaves will emerge from their buds like butterfly wings from cocoons. Crocus will smile shyly, while daffodils will beam from ear to ear, both lending their aromas to the sunshine. All these living, growing things will fill the air with freshness and life—the perfume of spring.

Happy Spring!

While there is much, much more that I love about spring, I think I’ll save it for another day. Today, the sunshine is calling, and I must go. I hope you have a chance to get outside and savor the season, too. Happy spring!

Check out the next post here!