Spring is almost upon us. In the Northern Hemisphere, the Vernal Equinox will officially occur Saturday, March 20, at 17:32 Coordinated Universal Time (UTC). This corresponds to 1:30 pm, Eastern Daylight Time, and 10:30 am on the West Coast.
During the twice-yearly Equinox, the tilt of the Earth’s axis is inclined neither away from nor towards the Sun, and the Sun is vertically above a point on the Equator. (The name “equinox” comes from the Latin for the words “equal” and “night — on these days night and day are approximately the same length.)
In my neck of the woods, the sun has begun to shine warmly and flowers have shot up above ground. Here’s hoping for a pretty, play-filled spring where you are.
As always, at times of seasonal change, I turn to the haiku poets to help give gentle expression to the turning of the year.
Now wild geese return …
What draws them
Crying, crying
All the long dark night?
-Roka
From my tiny roof
Smooth … Soft …
Still-White Snow
Melts in Melody
-Issa
Good morning, sparrow …
Writing on my
clean veranda
with your dewy feet
-Shiki
Opening thin arms …
A pink peony
Big as this!
Said my bitty girl
-Issa
Photos by Susan Sachs Lipman
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