Spring has sprung by Sue Robin

One doesn’t think of Southern California bursting into bloom in the spring, at least I didn’t before I lived there for nine years. One of my cherished memories of that time is walking outside in the evenings to be greeted by the intoxicating smell of night-blooming jasmine. As she so frequently does, Sue captures both the complexity and the simplicity of our lives in these times.

North Carolina Officials Call for Release of Body Camera Footage in Fatal Andrew Brown Shooting—Yahoo! News

Kavanaugh just erased years of precedent to keep kids in jail forever—MSNBC

C.E.O. Pay Remains Stratospheric, Even at Companies Battered by Pandemic—The New York Times

April 24, 2021

Spring has sprung
by Sue Robin, Los Angeles, California

There is a wealth of pleasure to be had from the simplest of things. I have a rather large pot garden. No, no, not that KIND of pot!  A month ago, “Tomato Mania” was held at the local farm. The tomato plants we brought home from there are now triple in size and will double again in the coming weeks. Some of the flowers have already transformed into tiny green tomatoes. The cucumber plant has also grown and produced small yellow, tulip shaped flowers, which will soon be mini cucumbers. The poblano pepper has grown, too, and has me wondering what I will cook. Chili Relleno, Cuban Chicken and Chili, most likely. All this new life fills me with a quiet joy.

Spring has brought forth its bounty and one cannot drive down the avenues without gaping at the variety of flowers and trees decked out in their fresh new clothes. It comes to a country slowly healing from within. The Pandemic, while not gone, is beginning to wane. President Biden is deftly reclaiming civility here and abroad. The USA has again set goals to combat climate change. The possibility of justice for all has surprised us with the conviction of former Officer Chauvin. The trials of those arrested at the insurrection on January 6^th are soon to follow.

Lest we think that justice has been fully served we must remember those to whom no justice has come. There are those who were lynched, those who were massacred in Tulsa, Oklahoma, and too many others who did not survive the racism that still runs rampant in this country. Say a prayer that the conviction of former Officer Chauvin will lead to changes in police departments around the country and, most importantly, in the hearts of citizens. May justice be served for all, no matter one’s race, ethnicity or religion, and every person be held accountable for his or her actions.

If our world is to thrive, we must all offer up ourselves to help and support each other. It is a simple gift and one that will bring great joy and relief to a weary world.