The Light of March

On March 8, Daylight Saving Time began in New York.

This winter has been particularly cold, with heavy snow that has remained for a long time in places. Yet even while the air is still chilly, signs of spring are quietly appearing. The light feels different, and the days are slowly growing longer.

The first day of Daylight Saving Time. Snow is still on the ground in Kent, Connecticut, but the light already feels like spring.

This year, on March 20, we will welcome the Spring Equinox

On this day, the sun rises exactly in the east and sets exactly in the west, and day and night are nearly equal in length. While the traditional Japanese calendar marks spring as beginning with Risshun (立春) in early February, in astronomy, spring begins at the Spring Equinox, called Shunbun (春分) in Japan, and continues until the day before the Summer Solstice (June 21 this year).

After the equinox, daylight in the Northern Hemisphere grows slowly longer.

When I look around, I begin to notice small signs of life, tiny flowers emerging from the soil, and tight buds forming on tree branches. Even during the coldest part of winter, life has been quietly preparing for this moment. There is something very touching about that.

The first snowdrops of the season. A quiet reminder that spring is already on its way.

Living in New York sometimes makes it feel as though we must keep running constantly. When we look at the outside world, especially the small screens we carry with us, it can feel as if everything is always “on.”

But nature moves in a different rhythm.

The four seasons, and the even more subtle rhythm of the 24 solar terms in the traditional East Asian calendar, remind us of the delicate cycles of the natural world. In the past, these rhythms helped guide agricultural life, letting people know when to begin planting, harvesting, and preparing for the next season.

Perhaps we, too, live more harmoniously when we follow these rhythms, not by constantly looking outward, but by turning inward and breathing with nature.

Last year, we planted two Yoshino cherry trees in the garden. Their buds are now beginning to swell. I am looking forward to the moment when they bloom.

A young Yoshino cherry tree, standing quietly in the early spring light.

Just thinking about it makes my heart a little warm.

Maybe spring brings us joy simply because it is the season when flowers return.

How about you?

Buds of the Yoshino cherry trees we planted last year. Spring is already beginning.