April Is Keep America Beautiful Month

With the new term “social distancing” in effect, days seem to drag, but time does pass, and it is April already! And, April is Keep America Beautiful, decorating, landscape architecture, lawn and garden, car care, home improvement, physical wellness, injury prevention, cancer control, autism awareness, child abuse prevention, youth sports safety, stress awareness, kite, straw hat, couple appreciation, customer loyalty, pecan, poetry, prevention of animal cruelty, volunteer month, and the most important holiday, Easter, April 12.

This, so far, is an early spring, but past times remind us you never know what to expect. I remember a year we had a deep snow in mid-April. Tulips were already in bloom and showed bright colors just above the snow.

So far we have enjoyed the crepe myrtles, a few japonicas, the many Bradford pears, forsythia, the many kinds of “Easter flowers,” such as jonquils, narcissi, etc. Now, the red buds and azaleas. Isn’t N.W. Arkansas a beautiful place to live? The lawns and fields have grown green grass for the perfect background of the colors. The plentiful rains which we are so prone to complain about, has brought these miracles.

An oddity, a softwood maple in the yard is full of buds, just ready to leaf out, and one lone limb, at the very end, has a literal bouquet of full grown, new, green leaves. Noticeable!

May everyone have a happy Easter and remember its reason; and all year, for happy moments, praise God; difficult moments, seek God; quiet moments, worship God; painful moments, trust God; and every moment, Thank God.

Happy birthday to Claus Bess, Dale Bailey, Emily Pitts, Donald Mounce, Jamie Bess, Caleb Bailey, Brynlee Luttrell, Jessie Curtis.

Happy anniversary to Eugene and Elaine Olszewski, Robert and Bonita Curtsinger, David and Sherry Mark, Keith and Dawn Myers.

Happy years, all!