03.31.07
Posted in Nature, Seasons at 9:42 pm by Ric
Visited Boyer Chute NWR today with my wife. The drive there went from overcast skys to a light rain. The skys were dramatic.
At Boyer Chute the light rain suddenly turned to downpour (loved it!) getting us pretty soaked. We took refuge in the car driving to Blair. Just as quickly the rain subsided. The white smoke from a factory provided a contrast to the dark sky.
We ended up at Black Elk-Neihardt Park in Blair where the sun tried to come through but dark skies prevailed.
I’ve been delighted at all that has turned green or flowered. But the dark skies and the smell or rain were the highlights of this outing. Something about a March or April storm that doesn’t compare to any other time of year.
What have you been seeing?
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03.27.07
Posted in Nature, Seasons at 9:42 pm by Ric
The big change the past 5 to 7 days has been the greening of the landscape. Lawns have quickly gone from brown to green. I saw people at a golf course 2 days ago. The grass was so green it was stunning.
A shrub in my yard is leafing out. I don’t even know what species it is. But it’s tiny green leaves are the first I’ve seen this spring. This is such a huge change. Leaves show us the wind, waving back and forth even in the most subtle breeze. During winter the only way we see wind is when it is strong enough to blow the tree branches or snow (or send a grocery bag flying by). Leaves also allow us to hear the wind in all it’s force and all it’s subtilty.
In a week or so the trees will start leafing out. March is known for the phrase “in like a lion, out like a lamb”. The thing I associate most with April isn’t the emergence of flowers. It’s the way it starts with naked trees in the woods just starting to leaf out. Trees that you can see through. Then at the end of April we have a sea of green. What lies beyond is a secret we only uncover by going there.
Get out and notice!
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03.26.07
Posted in Wellness at 7:56 am by Ric
Spring is a time to think about cleansing and casting off things we don’t need. This includes our bodies. One easy way to acheive this is a Salt Scrub. This is a treatment done at most spas. It’s also something you can do yourself.
A Salt Scrub removes dead skin cells, cleanses pores, softens skin, and brings toxins to the surface and out of the body. It also feels very envigorating.
To learn how to do this and what you will need see this article, Home Spa - Give Yourself a Salt Scrub, on The Healing Connection website.
Feel good and get in the swing of spring!
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03.22.07
Posted in Nature, Seasons at 8:50 pm by Ric
Never mind that spring has officially arrived (as of March 20th)…
As I sat on my porch last night listening to Robins (more than I could count) singing everywhere, with thunder off in the distance, and damp air all around me, I couldn’t help but be amazed at how quickly things change. At the begining of the month it was winter cold and there was still a great deal of snow on the ground. Nature was still very much in that inward mode. Now things are starting to turn green, insects are appearing, the feel and smell of the climate has completely transformed. The birds were singing with such intensity, fliting from branch to branch, sending their territorial message to all within hearing distance. We’re past the small signs of spring. The bursting forth phase is here!
Get out and enjoy the changes!
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03.18.07
Posted in Nature, Seasons at 1:22 am by Ric
We’ve had some very spring like weather (Wasn’t Tuesday, March 13th gorgeous?), followed by some colder days. That’s March in Nebraska. The volatility of March can be hard on us but it is also a time of hope (see Time of Hope / Time of Difficulty). This brings me to the topic of the Official Start of Spring. This year that event occurs on March 20th at 7:07 CDT.
This point in time has less to do with actual weather conditions than it does astronomical events. At this time the center of the Sun is directly over the Earth’s equator. This event is called the Vernal Equinox. Equinox comes from Latin roots meaning “equal” and “night”. Day and night are of equal length. Actually that’s not quite true. Because the Sun extends well beyond it’s center we can still see part of the Sun after it’s center has gone below the horizon. There is a little more sunlight than darkness. But close enough.
From this point on daylight, for those in the Northern Hemisphere, will increase until it reaches it’s maximum during the Summer Solstice, June 21st, when the Sun reaches it’s greatest distance from the equator. Then daylight starts to decrease until we reach the Autumnal Equinox where day and night are equal again.
How can summer, and the hottest months of the year, occur after the days start getting shorter? The reason is the oceans which play a big role in our weather. It takes them awhile to catch up to the changes in light level.
Why do we even have seasons? The Earth tilts. During summer in the Northern Hemisphere we are tilted closer to the sun than the Southern Hemisphere which is experiencing winter. During our winter the opposite is true and we trade places, weather wise.
Whatever the reason for the seasons it sure beats having the same thing all year long.
Get out and enjoy the spring.
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03.13.07
Posted in Nature, Seasons at 11:17 pm by Ric
On Saturday I checked the nearby Silver Maple trees and the buds had not opened yet. Today they are in full flower (see above and below). I don’t know for sure but think this may well be the first flowering plant in the Omaha area. For more on this see the previous post Snow vs. The Coming Spring. Why is this significant? It’s a symbol for all the growth that is about to burst forth. Plus it’s a thing of beauty to behold!
Since these flowers are tiny they usually go unnoticed. While you are out in areas with trees look around. You are likely to see some. Silver Maples are widespread in the area.
Look soon. They won’t be here long.
Enjoy the spring!
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03.12.07
Posted in Nature, Seasons at 2:07 am by Ric
I hope everyone has had a chance to spend time outdoors on this beutiful weekend. Yesterday my wife and I walked around Wehrspann Lake (aka Chalco Hills). It was sunny, warm, and there was very little wind. I was surprised at how the lake was still frozen, enough so that many people were able to enjoy ice fishing. The Papio NRD has a web cam of Wehrspann. Just go to their main website (here) and click on Chalco Hills Web Cam. The picture is updated every ten seconds or so. It does look a little greyer than it really is but isn’t modern technology wonderful?
While there I saw my first Bluebird of the year. Cardinals are singing regularly now and Robins have just arrived in the area and taken up territories. I saw migratory robins starting 2 weeks ago but just Friday (March 9th) I heard my first Robin singing. I’ve also seen an insect here and there.
Small signs of spring but I’m loving it. More is on the way!
One of the things I notice about spring each year is that each phase passes rather quickly. Get out and enjoy it. It will be changing soon.
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03.03.07
Posted in Nature, TCM at 3:50 am by Ric
The picture above has been posted on the Healing Connection website (here) for quite some time. The reason is that it presents an example of how nature provides a message or a concept right before our eyes that often goes unnoticed.
I thought I’d share the story behind this picture.
In 2002 I made a life-changing decision to change not only my career but the direction and purpose of my life. I left a corporate job I had held for 31 years and set out to become a Massage Therapist and an Ortho-Bionomy pracitioner.
One week before I started massage school I went, along with my wife, on a vacation to the Black Hills. Among the pictures I brought back was the one above of the semi-wild donkeys at Custer State Park. They would frequently stop traffic by hanging around the road where passers-by would collect.
It was eight months later, while attending a Traditional Chinese Medicine class that I felt compelled to revisit the photo, this time discovering it was a near-perfect representation of the Yin Yang symbol (see picture below). (For more info on the concept of Yin and Yang go here).
Not only do the animals line up into the proper shape but the small circles do as well. The black circle within the larger white section, and vice-versa, are represented by the donkey’s noses.
Coincidence? Or is this a metaphorical image for contemplation?
Since I was about to embark on a journey, in this case massage school, that served to refocus my awareness on wellness and balance in life, it’s hard not to see this as a harbinger, these two animals anouncing, in their own way, what was to come.
When we look with different eyes it’s amazing what we will see.
What have you been seeing?
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