From Mona’s desk
The lions & lambs of March
Spring, don’t tease me.
Don’t sneak in with mild temps and warm sunshine only to take it away after I’ve forgotten my coat at the office.
We have two and a half weeks of “official” winter left so don’t lull me into thinking I can think about taking down the storm windows and put up the screens, or start working the flower beds or move fire wood off the porch and to the back yard.
Most of us are familiar with the saying, “In like a lion, out like a lamb.” According to the Farmer’s Almanac, with March being such a changeable month for weather, it’s understandable that the saying can often ring true.
Sayings like this one, according to farmersalmanac.com, sprang from early beliefs that included “the idea that there should be a balance in weather and life. So if a month came in bad (roaring like a lion), it should go out good and calm (docile, like a lamb).”
oysterenglish.com is a bit more straight-forward, saying “in like a lion and out like a lamb “means the weather is very cold at the beginning of the month and warmer at the end of the month.” Clearly, oysterenglish hasn’t spent many months of March in Nebraska if they believe that’s always a given.
CNN.com says originally the saying may have had nothing to do with the weather. It may have started as a reference to astronomy, referencing the positions of the constellations of Leo, a lion, and Aries, a ram or lamb. According to CNN.com, “Leo (the lion) rises in the east to start March and the month ends with the constellation Aries (the ram, or lamb) setting in the west.” Eventually the saying might have been adapted to include the wild swings of weather seen in March.
Another theory gives the saying a Biblical origin according to theguardian.com, as in “Jesus’s first appearance was as the sacrificial lamb, but he will return as the Lion of Judah, hence those symbolic animals.” Maybe it has to do with Easter, which can occur as early as March 22 or as late as April 25. Easter, by the way, is April 9 this year.
Regardless, the relative mild temps and sunshine of the early week could lull us into thinking March is beginning as a very calm lamb. But as of Tuesday, the forecast for Wednesday night and Thursday calls for a chance of snow. I’ll take those as the teeth and claws of the lion, especially if it means March will end as a very calm, warm, sunny and springlike lamb.