I don’t need to look at the calendar to see that Spring has sprung around here. The daffodils announce that all by themselves. It’s not hard to see how early cultures looked around at the environment to understand how it all started. The wolf and snake have unique characteristics that fit into stories of creation, turtles that support the earth, etc.
I can easily think of the earth having an inner child that lives through a cycle. In the Spring, he jumps up to play and brings out all the flowers in his exuberance. In the Summer, he roams around in lazy pleasure through trees and meadows. In the Fall, he starts getting tired and sits to watch theĀ fields turn yellow and the pumpkins ripen. In the Winter, he just can’t keep his eyes open any more and tucks in for a sleep, taking all the green and warm with him.
Our word for Spring comes from the Old English meaning to literally spring. Makes sense doesn’t it? We go from cold and leafless to sudden blossom in the blink of an eye. Spring leaps out as if the daffodils trumpet the change to wake up the earth child to come out and play.
But, of course, I understand that we live on a planet, perfectly sized and situated in our solar system to allow for an atmosphere and rotation that makes Spring happen. We have a protector planet called Jupiter that’s big enough to absorb errant collisions from blowing us apart. We have enough biodiversity to sustain life, despite our effort to progress. And I don’t think it’s all a happy coincidence of location and evolution. I’m absolutely firm in my belief that we have a God who happens to know a lot about physics and biology. I’ll take His intelligently designed Spring over randomness any day. It’s just so pretty.