“It boggles my mind that someone can see life breathed into a baby, watch the grass die and then come to life again, see leaves fall and watch the rebirth of a tree, or gaze on any of the majestic splendor that is this earth and not be overpowered by the presence of an Almighty God!”

– Bill McCartney

Rebirth.  It is all around us this week.  In fact, I suppose a snapshot of the first week of April could replace all the words a dictionary might hold on the subject.  Everywhere I look, I see life — fresh, new unblemished life — springing into creation.  It never gets old for me; and each time Spring rolls around, I feel like I’m seeing it for the very first time.  Anyone who thinks that the Creator breathed life into the world and then decided to take an eternal nap needs to take a closer look, because every time I open my eyes this week I see another example of ongoing life breathed into existence.

The earth has turned from brown grass to snow to mud and now to rich brown soil that pushes bright green grass through to greet the sun.  The green patches sparkle with dew against the dark background of the soil, and soon they will overgrow it and shelter it from the summer sun.  The magnolias, the first herald of the return of flowering trees, sit poised with their buds half-open and await the right moment to bloom in all their glory.

One clear night I looked up to the vast, dark sky, searching for the moon.  She seemed to be hiding, and I nearly had given up  finding her when suddenly she appeared as a U-shaped crescent, lying flat on the horizon.  Her light was so small that every star in the heavens had come out to dance and to help  her light the night sky.  It was magnificent to see all the stars reborn after several cloudy days had seemed to remove their light from the world.  Now, each night, I watch as the moon seems to fill with light, from the bottom up, on her way to reclaiming her rightful throne as the ruler of the night.  The brighter she glows, the fewer stars catch my eye; and I wonder whether she is calling them, one by one, to fill her vessel with their light.  I smile as I think that maybe the mother moon is cradling her star children in her arms and rocking them to sleep as her crescent sways gently and imperceptibly in the darkness.

Spring is one of my favorite seasons.  I love the return of color and light.  I love the daily chorus of birdsong that accompanies my morning walk.  I love the way I can hear the heart of the universe beat with excitement as the world is reborn once again.  My own heart beats with the same cadence; and I know for certain that I, too, am reborn with the return of Spring.

Everything Old Becomes New Again