SPRINGTIME: Daylight Savings
THE GIFT BEGINS
We take it for granted every year. Who could blame us? After all, we’ve known all our lives that daylight savings time will come…this year Sunday March 9th. Big deal. But as I watch the buds on the trees begin, and the rainy days decrease, my thoughts turn to the delightful gift of two or more hours added onto our days without the slightest effort on our part. The clock will do me the favor without my even having to ask. Am I entitled to this gift? Of course not. Yet I take it for granted. How then shall I use this undeserved gift? How will I use this new opportunity? How many more of these springtime gifts will each of us have, anyway?
You’ve heard the phrase “if you want something done, ask a busy person to do it,” or “80% of the work is done by 20% of the people. Where do I want to fit? I’m a busy person as you probably are but if I’m in the 20%, well, I want to make it count and not just clutter it up with more busyness.
This kind of thinking is not new to me, however. My thoughts get very introspective each spring even though we in Southern California don’t crawl out from months of snow and dreary weather. We do see changes in the air. Last week my daughter Stacey and I visited the Bolsa Chica Wetlands and stood for hours admiring the terns, seagulls, and even fish jumping out of the water like silver blades cutting through the air. It was like a 3 hour vacation in a tropical land except it’s 10 minutes from our house. Perhaps that’s what started me looking forward to daylight saving time and my spirits were lifted just by seeing the sun come out after the series of rains we’ve had.
Whatever the cause of my thinking of the gift of 2 more hours of daylight, I came home from the wetlands vowing to stop more often and observe nature around me, to not get so busy that I disregard this great gift. I will soon be listing a home where the lady has a garden. She tells me there’s nothing like working with the soil and watching your handiwork bloom. My husband, having grown up on a farm, is more in touch with nature than most. I am learning from him, also, to stop and smell the roses.
Oh, yes, the usual joys of summer will take place. Out will come our favorite boogie boards and happy wet suits to take to San Clemente on a day off and feel the press of nature lifting us up and carrying us to shore. Imagine a free, personal ride with nature. Nothing like it. And we’ll get in the pool with the grandkids as often as we can. Midweek in June we’ll slip away for a few days with the kids to camp in the Sequoia National Forest, fish, sit by the fire and sing silly camp songs along with my guitar.
But what about those 2 extra hours a day? I will not attempt to do more than my schedule already allows, but simply to do it better with a new zing in my step. Rising a little earlier will seem easier. I’m already more motivated to get more organized so we can have time for the fun stuff. This year, during the rains, Wally and I have gone to the movies more than ever before. We’ve seen our fair share of alleged A rated movies that were very disappointing. Who rates these things anyway? Our little joke is that if it’s A rated (artistic, alleged great acting) it usually turns out to be very dark, violent and, well, even boring. Our friends Carol and Steve had warned us that “Atonement” was so boring they almost walked out half way through. But no. We had to see for ourselves. After all, I have a background in the arts and acting and it was promoted as a Jane Austin type film. Well, it was boring, long, dark sad, hard to follow, etc. But Hollywood thought it was great. I guess we’re weird. We like movies that make us laugh, or inspire us and make us think. After seeing, “The Bucket List” we had several lively discussions about what we’d like to do with the rest of our lives before we croak. No, we won’t be sky diving like Denzel Washington, but we’ll be doing other fun stuff. So, I shall return to my favorite escape…reading at bedtime. I’m reading, “Sea of Glory” right now after finishing, “Daniel Boone”. Love to read history as you probably know.
So March 9th is simply a great mid year wake up call for us. We evaluate how we’ve spent the hibernation of what we in Huntington Beach laughingly call winter and look to spring. “Summertime and the living is easy. Fish are jumpin’ and the cotton is high.” Well, maybe living isn’t always “easy”. But even for those of us who work, there are hours left to get out and enjoy even if it’s only your own back yard. I wish for you a joyous spring. Oh, and it wouldn’t hurt to try boogie boarding too. It’s a much better substitute than sky diving.
Quote across bottom of page:
“Take care of the minutes. for the hours will take care of themselves.” Lord Chesterfield
Other Quotes:
“The time is always right to do what is right.” Lincoln
“Time heals all wounds.” (Saying). “Time wounds all heels.” (Frank Case)
“Dost thou love life? Then do not squander Time; for that’s the stuff Life is made of.” B. Franklin
“Start by doing the necessary, then do the possible. Suddenly you’re doing the impossible.” Unknown
“No person will have occasion to complain of the want of time who never loses any. It is wonderful how much may be done if we are always doing.” Thomas Jefferson
“One touch of Nature makes the whole world kin.” Shakespeare
Nature is ever at work building and pulling down, creating and destroying, keeping everything whirling and flowing, allowing no rest buy in rhythmical motion, chasing everything in endless song out of one beautiful form into another.” John Muir
“Nature’s above art.” Shakespeare
“We all look at Nature too much, and live with her too little.” Oscar Wilde
“Live simply, love generously, care deeply, speak kindly.”
We take it for granted every year. Who could blame us? After all, we’ve known all our lives that daylight savings time will come…this year Sunday March 9th. Big deal. But as I watch the buds on the trees begin, and the rainy days decrease, my thoughts turn to the delightful gift of two or more hours added onto our days without the slightest effort on our part. The clock will do me the favor without my even having to ask. Am I entitled to this gift? Of course not. Yet I take it for granted. How then shall I use this undeserved gift? How will I use this new opportunity? How many more of these springtime gifts will each of us have, anyway?
You’ve heard the phrase “if you want something done, ask a busy person to do it,” or “80% of the work is done by 20% of the people. Where do I want to fit? I’m a busy person as you probably are but if I’m in the 20%, well, I want to make it count and not just clutter it up with more busyness.
This kind of thinking is not new to me, however. My thoughts get very introspective each spring even though we in Southern California don’t crawl out from months of snow and dreary weather. We do see changes in the air. Last week my daughter Stacey and I visited the Bolsa Chica Wetlands and stood for hours admiring the terns, seagulls, and even fish jumping out of the water like silver blades cutting through the air. It was like a 3 hour vacation in a tropical land except it’s 10 minutes from our house. Perhaps that’s what started me looking forward to daylight saving time and my spirits were lifted just by seeing the sun come out after the series of rains we’ve had.
Whatever the cause of my thinking of the gift of 2 more hours of daylight, I came home from the wetlands vowing to stop more often and observe nature around me, to not get so busy that I disregard this great gift. I will soon be listing a home where the lady has a garden. She tells me there’s nothing like working with the soil and watching your handiwork bloom. My husband, having grown up on a farm, is more in touch with nature than most. I am learning from him, also, to stop and smell the roses.
Oh, yes, the usual joys of summer will take place. Out will come our favorite boogie boards and happy wet suits to take to San Clemente on a day off and feel the press of nature lifting us up and carrying us to shore. Imagine a free, personal ride with nature. Nothing like it. And we’ll get in the pool with the grandkids as often as we can. Midweek in June we’ll slip away for a few days with the kids to camp in the Sequoia National Forest, fish, sit by the fire and sing silly camp songs along with my guitar.
But what about those 2 extra hours a day? I will not attempt to do more than my schedule already allows, but simply to do it better with a new zing in my step. Rising a little earlier will seem easier. I’m already more motivated to get more organized so we can have time for the fun stuff. This year, during the rains, Wally and I have gone to the movies more than ever before. We’ve seen our fair share of alleged A rated movies that were very disappointing. Who rates these things anyway? Our little joke is that if it’s A rated (artistic, alleged great acting) it usually turns out to be very dark, violent and, well, even boring. Our friends Carol and Steve had warned us that “Atonement” was so boring they almost walked out half way through. But no. We had to see for ourselves. After all, I have a background in the arts and acting and it was promoted as a Jane Austin type film. Well, it was boring, long, dark sad, hard to follow, etc. But Hollywood thought it was great. I guess we’re weird. We like movies that make us laugh, or inspire us and make us think. After seeing, “The Bucket List” we had several lively discussions about what we’d like to do with the rest of our lives before we croak. No, we won’t be sky diving like Denzel Washington, but we’ll be doing other fun stuff. So, I shall return to my favorite escape…reading at bedtime. I’m reading, “Sea of Glory” right now after finishing, “Daniel Boone”. Love to read history as you probably know.
So March 9th is simply a great mid year wake up call for us. We evaluate how we’ve spent the hibernation of what we in Huntington Beach laughingly call winter and look to spring. “Summertime and the living is easy. Fish are jumpin’ and the cotton is high.” Well, maybe living isn’t always “easy”. But even for those of us who work, there are hours left to get out and enjoy even if it’s only your own back yard. I wish for you a joyous spring. Oh, and it wouldn’t hurt to try boogie boarding too. It’s a much better substitute than sky diving.
Quote across bottom of page:
“Take care of the minutes. for the hours will take care of themselves.” Lord Chesterfield
Other Quotes:
“The time is always right to do what is right.” Lincoln
“Time heals all wounds.” (Saying). “Time wounds all heels.” (Frank Case)
“Dost thou love life? Then do not squander Time; for that’s the stuff Life is made of.” B. Franklin
“Start by doing the necessary, then do the possible. Suddenly you’re doing the impossible.” Unknown
“No person will have occasion to complain of the want of time who never loses any. It is wonderful how much may be done if we are always doing.” Thomas Jefferson
“One touch of Nature makes the whole world kin.” Shakespeare
Nature is ever at work building and pulling down, creating and destroying, keeping everything whirling and flowing, allowing no rest buy in rhythmical motion, chasing everything in endless song out of one beautiful form into another.” John Muir
“Nature’s above art.” Shakespeare
“We all look at Nature too much, and live with her too little.” Oscar Wilde
“Live simply, love generously, care deeply, speak kindly.”
posted by Ann Baker, Realtor at
6:58 PM
