Turning the calendar page from March to April seems to create an air of optimism when it comes to spring. Although the weather may not always reflect it, we are confident that the most fragrant of seasons will be here to stay any day now.
Of the seasons, springs is the shortest here. Winter overstays its welcome and impatient summer arrives too soon. So spring, or what we imagine it should be, sort of gets compressed between its two more overbearing seasonal neighbors.
We will have maybe six or eight weeks of what we consider spring weather and we cherish it, in part, because of its brevity.
The evidence of spring is all around us now. Kids are practicing baseball at Propst Park. The hum of lawnmowers wafts through neighborhoods. Gardeners are stampeding local nurseries for the flowers and vegetables. Tackle boxes are being restocked. Golf clubs are retrieved from exile in the dusty corner of the garage.
Crawfish season is arriving and in another month, the Hitching Lot Farmers market will be open.
Easter is Sunday, bringing with it the old iconic images of little girls in pastel dresses and boys chafing under the constraints of new “Sunday” clothes.
Columbus is at its best in the spring. The city’s beauty — from the handsome old homes that will be featured in this year’s Pilgrimage to the Riverwalk along the banks of the Tombigbee.
This year’s Pilgrimage will be the biggest yet in celebration of its 75th Anniversary. The kickoff party is set for Monday, featuring crawfish and shrimp and live music. The official start of Pilgrimage is set for April 11 with its annual half-marathon and 5K run. Also on April 11 is Catfish in the Alley. You can almost smell the catfish frying and hear the music as it drifts down the block.
The kids at Mississippi School for Mathematics and Science will again be staging their “Tales from the Crypt” performances at venerable Friendship Cemetery during Pilgrimage.
Main Street Columbus will holds its annual Downtown Spring Open House this weekend. The organization’s Noon Tunes, held each Thursday, have commenced in the courtyard of the renovated Trotter Center.
This year’s Market Street Festival is soon approaching (May 1-2), featuring the eclectic artwork, crafts and “stuff” that provide a window into our cultural souls.
All of these events are opportunities for us to gather as a community and celebrate spring, which arrives too late and leaves too soon.
Brutish summer will be here before we know it.
So let’s enjoy spring and make the most of it while it is here.
The Dispatch Editorial Board is made up of publisher Peter Imes, columnist Slim Smith, managing editor Zack Plair and senior newsroom staff.
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