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Spring returns Wednesday, March 20, a strange return given it seems that spring has came and went several times through the past winter months.
Yet, spring is more than higher temperatures and beautiful blooms. There are lessons to learn from this season. There is hope in this season of renewal.
To partially quote a Willie Nelson song, “at a time when the world seems to be spinning hopelessly out of control,” spring reminds us of the message from the biblical book of Ecclesiastes: “To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven.”
Yes, there are rainy days. There are bad times. There are Shakespeare’s winters of our discontent.
At times, it may seem that we have entered an everlasting dark period with on-going wars, violence, bitter politics and a staggering economy. Still, given enough time, this dark period, too, shall pass. It will pass all the sooner, all the better, as long as we do not lose hope. As long as we remember, to every thing there is a season. And this season of calamity shall also pass unto a season of renewal.
Each of us faces such seasons within our personal lives. Each person endures the loss of loved ones, the shattering of relationships, the loss of a job, illnesses, all sorts of untold hardships and disappointments. Despair and despondency taunt each of us on some level, at some time, in our lives.
And yet, even in those bleakest moments, we find solace in the prospect of the healing hands of time. We find hope that to every thing, there is a season. Like spring, we cling to the belief that things will improve.
We must strive to make things better. We must couple hope with determination. We must sow our time with faith to see us through. We must sow our fields with the sweat of our perseverance, the reckoning of our ingenuity, the iron of our commitment.
We must not give into despair. We must not surrender to the winter. We must believe in the possibility of renewal. We must keep our eyes open, our minds alert, our spirits at the ready.
Renewal will come, and we must be prepared to seize the opportunities of a new day, the prospects of a coming spring.
What We Think
Seeking spring
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Thoughts on graduation
Graduation ceremonies reflect how life marches on. For the students receiving their diplomas and degrees, graduation is a culmination of the majority of their lives’ work.
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Thumbs up, thumbs down
THUMBS UP: To Dr. John Gaston, retiring dean of Valdosta State University’s College of the Arts. For the past 10-plus years, Gaston has worked to build a more interconnected program with various artistic and communications departments working together. Given that you are likely to see one College of the Arts department collaborating with another during events is proof of Gaston’s success.
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On the go this weekend
Take a breath.
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Sharing the roads with motorcycles
With the recent pleasant temperatures and sunny skies, the number of motorcycles on area roads has increased.
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Thank your local law enforcement today
Today, May 15, was designated Peace Officers Memorial Day back in 1962 when President John F. Kennedy was in office.
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Visit musical roots this weekend
Beginning Saturday, May 18, Nashville, Ga., will be hosting a special Smithsonian exhibit, “New Harmonies: Celebrating American Roots Music.” The exhibit will continue through the end of June and Nashville has done a tremendous job in promoting and planning for the exhibit.
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Happy Mother’s Day!
A few years ago, a television commercial asked, Who first believed in you? Many folks may have instinctively answered by simply saying, Mom.
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Thumbs up
THUMBS UP: To mail workers, volunteers and food bank staff for gathering food for the annual Stamp Out Hunger postal food drive today. A plastic bag designated for canned goods and other non-perishable food items should have arrived in your mailbox earlier this week. If you haven’t already, take a few moments to fill the bag with food and hang from your mailbox. If you didn’t receive the special Stamp Out Hunger bag, any plastic bag filled with food will do. This food drive helps feed thousands of South Georgians annually. Valdosta-Lowndes County often donates more food than nearly all other cities and counties in Georgia.
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Celebrating nurses
She is considered the founder of modern nursing so it seems only natural that National Nurses Week would include Florence Nightingale’s birthday.
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Helping the hungry: Mail it in!
Valdosta-Lowndes County continues revealing its generous spirit.
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Thoughts on graduation
