Sunny Iowa Emerges Again

The sun is just setting here in Iowa and I can hear a sound I have not heard for many months; it is the sound of birds loudly singing their beautiful songs of life. The snow is beginning to melt away; transforming the land into streams of mud and water. The tempurature warms the skin again and the smell stimulates the senses and makes my soul feel ready to live again. This winter has been tough on people and I have not been ammune to it myself. I have done what all good midwesterners do... I have endured, I have shut down my emotions, I have slowed my reactions, I have protected myself against the cold and depression of this time of year but always at the cost of creating some protections from others pain and joys as well. I have to admit that I now envey areas in the world that do not have 4 seasons like Iowa but I also have to say that Lent and Good Friday seem different when the death and hopelessness are as evident as looking out my own window. However, I write this note not from the bleakness of Winter... I can hear, taste and smell the beauty we call Easter and new life and Spring even if it is not quite here. Hello to the world from Sunny Iowa...