Sunday Letter ~ March 2024

Dear Sunday Letter peeps~

Welcome to the rollercoaster weather days of March. March is extremely predictable in her unpredictability. Notice how varied the temperatures will be over the next few weeks. Dreary and cold. Stormy. Sunny, warm days that trick you into wanting to plant tomatoes. The truth is we could still have snow. (Shhh!)

March loves to remind us that we aren’t completely out of the winter woods yet. And how about her howling winds? Hold on to your garden hat lest it sails skyward and becomes snagged by a tree branch.

Have you ever seen a bird nest built from a hat taken by the wind? The busy finches could definitely make it happen this month.

Early Easter

Easter always falls on the Sunday following the first full moon after spring equinox. This year it falls on March 31. (FYI, the first full moon after spring equinox is known as the Paschal Full Moon. Paschal comes from Pascha, the Greek and Latin word for Passover.)

I say all this not only to provide a quick lesson on the timing of Easter’s moveable feast, but also as a reminder to start thinking about this year’s Easter bonnet!

To those who don’t celebrate Easter, I believe we can all set aside time to wear a bonnet and celebrate goodness and peace. Don’t you?

The Challenge of Balance

Confession: Lately, I’ve been having a difficult time balancing book editing, writing/blogging, reading, and early spring gardening with the other things I need and want to do. When stretched thin, something always falls by the wayside.

Oh, I hate dropping the ball or getting sick or feeling burned out.

You know that ugly little voice that likes to poke your soft spots and say, “Hey, you—what’s wrong with you? Why are you such a slacker?” Ugh. My ugly little voice has been a real loudmouth lately.

If we hear something often enough, we start to believe it, no matter how crazy it may be.

I mentioned my blah mood to my girlfriends who quickly reminded me how everything in life is tied to seasons. Just like gardening is seasonal, so is my writing. It’s okay to let go of things that don’t belong to a particular season.

Also, we can’t do all the things all the time. 

Winter is prime writing time for me, because it’s impossible to do much outdoors. Now though, when the world is greening up, gardening hits me like a fever, and you’ll probably find me puttering around outside.

I hope you have good friends who help keep you balanced, because that silly, ugly voice really gets around, visiting everyone from time to time.

Eclipse Fever

Speaking of fever, Arkansas has Eclipse Fever. I imagine other areas in the direct path of the soon-to-occur solar eclipse are experiencing the same thing.

It’s happening on April 8, 2024.

Take a look at this cool map courtesy of NASA’s Visualization Studio.

• Our area of Fayetteville, Arkansas will experience 95% obscuration meaning it will get pretty dark.
• This is an event you can’t be late for—the moon moves fast. The path of totality will last less than five minutes depending upon where you are on the map.
• NASA provides an unbelievable amount of compelling online information even without an upcoming eclipse. Click HERE to be amazed.
• Be sure to wear solar eclipse glasses. The lenses of approved glasses block almost all visible, infrared and ultraviolet light, according to The Planetary Society. Sunglasses don’t block infrared radiation.

Will you be able to see the eclipse from your home? Or, will you travel to a place in the path to see it?

What’s Growing and Blooming

March is here, and the garden is coming alive!

Take a look at what’s going on in our garden.

According to our local weather guy, February 2024 was the warmest February on record for Fayetteville. As the data is being compiled, this is likely true globally too (read more at Reuters). This means spring comes earlier. And while we revel in the warm weather and become joyful over tulip stems pushing through the soil, really, we should be concerned over the lack of winter.

Nature needs winter. Plants need dormancy. Snow is a vital water and energy source. I could go on and on, but unfortunately those who believe climate change is a ‘hoax’ probably won’t change their minds based on anything I say. Like most things these days, climate change has become political, and that’s a horrible thing.

Melting glaciers. Flowers bloom thirty days earlier than they did a hundred years ago. Birds migrate earlier. Marine species are moving north. Wildfires. Extreme weather. There is a world of science behind climate change. Our garden even tells the story—our hostas are coming up weeks earlier than normal and our redbud is in full bloom already.

It’s okay to be happy about something while worrying about it too. While I enjoy this warm, spring-like Sunday, I’ll also consider ways I can be a better steward of our planet.

❤ 🌳 🌅

Things Momma Says:

I can’t run everybody’s business, but I try.

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Happy March, friends. Thanks for reading today’s Sunday Letter.

Stay balanced. Stay informed. And do something fun today!

Grace Grits and Gardening
Farm. Food. Garden. Life.