Spring rituals
In byegone ages there were rituals to mark the coming of spring. The local one in Reading (Abbey) was the singing of “Summer is Icumen In“. Or, at least, thats the one I was forced to sing at school. In most places there were harvest festivals and the like, dancing, getting very drunk, etc…
In modern times (if we’re lucky enough to even notice the difference between winter and spring) we’re as likely to just complain about how long its taken to arrive, or how lacklustre it is now it has arrived.
Having nothing better to do on an Easter Monday, my parents and I went for a walk down by the canal (NOTE: this is rural, so the canal is actually a nice place to be, unlike the canals in Paddington) and tried to enjoy the nice weather. Well, the reports said it would be nice and that there would be some sun. I have to admit, there was some sun, in between the bits that were cloudy and windy and quite cold.
Weather being one of the staple topics of British conversation, you’re probably not finding this post very interesting. But it was interesting to me to remember what I thought spring used to be like; when it suddenly got warm and the sun shone and things started to grow (and we were forced to sing “Summer is Icumen In”…)
But maybe this is one of those cynical, growing-old things. I’m sure I noticed spring more when I spent more time outside, rather than in the office. Most of the exposure I get to the sun these days is walking to and from the canteen at lunchtime (providing the observations for the lunchtime discussions about the weather, obviously 
). Or, maybe, I notice it just as much, but find it more difficult to get excited about the slow turning of yet another year.
If you got this far looking for some sort of a point… sorry. Its all just rambling drivel, thats why it is posted under “random”!
1 comment April 17th, 2006