Daily Local News (West Chester, PA)
Spring arrives today; share the warmth
Today is the first day of spring, or more specifically the vernal equinox at 6:29 a.m. when “the sun crosses the celestial equator on its way north along the ecliptic,” according to The Old Farmer’s Almanac.
This year, the official start to the region’s romance with spring comes after a crazy onagain, off-again flirtation that lasted two months.
After a mild winter with more than one record high temperature, the region experienced the warmest February on record.
(Although it should be noted Punxsutawney Phil did not promise spring was right around the corner.)
Then came March, bringing our first taste of winter for the year. Just when we thought it was safe to put the shovels away, the region experienced first a “clipper” and then a Nor’easter, both accompanied by some of the coldest temperatures of the season.
Remember those days of Tshirts in the 70s? That was February. This is March, and it’s sweaters and mittens again.
The snowstorm Stella which dumped 6 to 16 inches of snow, depending where you were, came during spring break for many area colleges and after the change to Eastern Standard Time.
Our eyes were on the calendar toward spring; our reality was frozen in winter.
But today is the real deal: the point of night equaling day that signals a change in season.
The Old Farmer’s Almanac describes the vernal equinox as the point in the year “when all over the world, days and nights are approximately equal. The name equinox comes from Latin words which mean “equal night”—aequus (equal) and nox (night).”
“On the equinox, Earth’s two hemispheres are receiving the Sun’s rays about equally because the tilt of the Earth is zero relative to the Sun, which means that Earth’s axis neither points toward nor away from the Sun.”
Scientific explanation aside, the coming of spring will bring a change in mood and attitude. Winter is associated with blues and cabin fever. Spring is sunshine and flowers.
People will smile more, get outdoors and show a friendlier, happier aspect to others.
Civility after all seems to change with the season and the place.
Consider: When you go into a Wawa, someone holds the door for you.
You say “thank you;” the other person says, “You’re welcome.”
If you don’t hold the door, or exchange the appropriate pleasantries, people look at you as if you’re in the wrong place.
Coffee drinkers are even buying a cup for the person behind them in line, a trend also taking place at Starbucks, even in the drive-through. Buy a cup; pay it forward.
When those same coffeedrinking commuters get to Route 422 or 95 or 476, however, the story line changes. Now, it’s every driver for himself, and no one can get out of the way fast enough.
So it is with the seasons: The same people who may grouse through the winter are cheery through spring.
Hours of daylight, temperatures and spring rain versus winter ice make a difference.
Even this year, when the warmth was in winter and the ice in spring, we look forward to the official first day of spring.
That’s today at sunrise, 6:29 a.m.
Open a door for someone, say thank you, and then drive nicely on the highway.
Warmer days are ahead.