Mother Nature Reigns

AN OLD-FASHIONED WINTER has finally returned to Michigan. During most nights in February, temperatures have been flirting with 0 degrees. It is very cold out, just like the good old days, with winds topping it all off.

The sure indicator is that East and West Bay, coming into (out of) Traverse City, have almost frozen solid; the floating ice appears to be covered with a blanket of pure white snow, creating the appearance of a desert oasis.

I hope you’re aware that we have been inundated over the last few decades by the media and intellectuals convincing us that global warming was a fast and true condition affecting our planet, and even scarier, it was purportedly irreversible. They might want to go back to the classroom to learn about nature's cyclical patterns and the bell curve as it applies to representative sample sizes.

Reflecting on this year’s "miracle" on the bays and my youth, I can remember mornings on my paper route, delivering the Detroit Free Press with my brothers, when our eyebrows and eyelashes frosted over in the cold, windy weather. We would sit in the kitchen and compare our thawing faces and boast about the amazing delivery times we had achieved.

Adversity can indeed be the mother of invention, allowing greater leg movement.

Valentine’s Day brought gorgeous sunny weather with temperatures near 40 F, challenging my insights just a bit; so much for my bluster.

Here’s to whatever Mother Nature delivers.

Spring tulip bulbs are in her line-up, reminding us that they are not too far off.