Spring Has Sprung!

Well, Texas may have its bluebonnets, but in Oklahoma we have henbit!  Fields, lawns and roadsides are covered with a beautiful, lavender blanket, spreading like spilled Easter-egg dye over all. For a weed, it is very attractive and well tolerated. Its seasonal color fits right in with the jonquils and the brilliant yellow of the forsythia bursting forth around town.

The splash of color from the humble henbit is especially welcome on days like yesterday, when the skies were the color of slate and the wind blew cold and biting.  This morning was warmer with the soft breezes of spring, and the sun that broke through heavy clouds is now beating down in earnest. We have been waiting for it to get warm enough to eat on the porch, and now it is too hot!

My little granddaughters in Texas regularly have their pictures taken in a field of bluebonnets, especially lovely as a background for their pastel dresses and the windblown tresses of blonde Anne-Marie, and Maddie, holding back a veil of red curls.

The Texas misses, 5 and 7, keep us enthralled with their cute sayings, especially the youngest one. She is bursting with information and misinformation at this stage, keeping her parents on their toes for explanations and clarifications.  Her mind was on orphans the other day, and Maddie told her father, "If me and Anne-Marie were orphans, we wouldn't remember you and mom."

Recently she heard of a church her dad had visited, and she questioned, "Is that in Jamaica?" then asked her mom, "Is Jamaica a place?"  When told that it is, she demanded, "Then why didn't you tell me?"

My son reported that recently Maddie asked when she could meet George Washington.  "In Heaven," He replied, to which she questioned, "Why?"  He told her because George Washington is dead. "Then can I have his autograph?" she persisted.

Spring is bursting out all over with new life all around us. Bunnies are hopping, chicks are hatching, bluebonnets are blowing and henbit is growing.  And so are the children, keeping springtime alive in the hearts of their Mimi and Pa Pa!