A note of appreciation to the color of Spring.
We tend to think of Spring as green. The first unfolding of the trees, the grass turning the color of a lime overnight. But, look a little deeper.
We are living in a sea of sunny yellow. Daffodils, forsythia, dandelions and other early spring arrivals in the garden have opened up to the sun and warmth and are making our world just a little bit brighter. The forsythia comes first in its own wild, unbound way. Its yellow blooms come off bare wood, no leaves, just spikes of bright yellow laid on the branches, as if it can’t wait to show off. Then the daffodils, their predictable, cheerful heads bobbing around the landscape. I never tire of the energy and life they bring to the spring garden.. I’ve planted them in the woodlands of our field in a tribute to a wonderful old friend whose daffodil garden lured us outside for early spring picnics back in the day.
Last fall, in an inspired moment, David seeded a planting of rapeseed in our field. Today it blooms bright yellow too, the first sign of life in our field, after the long, cold winter.
Even the light itself, particularly on this sunny morning, is a shade we don’t see any other time of year. More yellow, reflecting the citron, half-neon green of the unfolding leaves of the willows and locust trees in our landscape. And, those trees in turn spin off pollen which lies on the hood of my car in a sheet of yellow.
I’ve learned that there’s a reason for this in the natural world. Early pollinators see yellow especially well. These plants that bloom in our landscape are actually competing for the attention of the bees and others who emerge from their winter state to feed on them. Everyone’s saying “pick me” as they vie for the sweet first kiss of the insect world.
David and I commented on all this the other day as we walked the fields behind our house. We’ve come to think of these weeks as their own, singular season, distinct from the muddy brown of March and the lush green of summer. It’s yellow season. It’s fleeting, lasting only about 3 weeks, before it gives way to the new season, when the daffodils slump and the forsythia is overtaken by green.
And so on this beautiful sunny Upstate New York day, I say, go outside. Find something yellow and give it some extra appreciation and love. Yellow deserves it.
