The snow has begun to give way to streams of water; the sun is finally beginning to shine for a longer time each day; and hints of the onslaught of pollen are about to come our way. These signs point to the one inevitable thought that will soon creep through everyone’s heads: “Spring!”
With the coming of the vernal equinox on March 20, it is only a matter of time before people will be bustling about without the fear of slipping down an icy stairway or the anxiety of cleaning up the obscene snow sculptures scattered across campus. There will be no need to complain about soggy snowshoes or missing lunch trays.
Life on campus—and elsewhere—will be a bit livelier, now that the severe low temperatures and extremely annoying wind chills have died down. The hint of spring also means baseball for fans nationwide as spring training is already under way. Then, of course, there’s the fact that mid-March is associated with the color green and—you guessed it—St. Patrick’s Day.
What is so special about St. Patrick’s Day anyway? Well, aside from it commemorating the feast day of Saint Patrick, it has also become Ireland’s national holiday. This celebration contains numerous parades, festivals, and nationally themed foods and drinks. The St. Patrick’s Day parade is actually part of a five-day festival taking place in Dublin, Ireland. The largest St. Patrick’s Day parade happens to take place at New York City.
To commemorate the holiday on March 17, a number of people wear green and partake in many Irish-themed events. Traditional Irish foods and drinks are also in abundance during this time. Even those not of Irish descent participate in the celebration by consuming large amounts of alcoholic beverages—Guinness, Smithwicks, Irish whiskey, Irish cider, and Baileys Irish Cream are just some of the more popular drinks.
Springtime also brings about the return of flowers, though this is not quite evident just yet. As the weather begins to warm up, however, those colorful plants will start to sprout in gardens and along walkways. You’ll begin to see a few gardens filled with a variety of species of flowers. Unfortunately, this means the nasty dandelions will also show no mercy on previously pristine lawns.
Besides the weeds, what is the downside to spring? Perhaps the pollen is enough to make you refuse to leave your room until summertime. Or, maybe it’s the fact that you are just disturbed to see that much green all at one time (who even thought about making green the new pink anyway?). Whatever the case, it doesn’t seem to matter. Seasons refuse to skip and springtime just happens to be around the corner. Enjoy it while the season is still fresh.
