Spring is for Lovers

What is it about spring that makes us want to fall in love?  It is as if the sudden burst of sunshine warms the chill from our hearts after a disappointing Valentine season.  Or, perhaps, is it the enthusiastic chirping of birds and the first sighting of lambs in the fields?  As I admire the beautiful scenery of Ireland, I often think that this would be a wonderful place to fall in love.  How come it hasn’t happened for me yet? I wonder.  It always seems so easy for everyone else.  I am in the phase of my life where many of my friends are getting married and having children.  A quick glance at my Facebook news feed reveals profile pictures of infants and weddings.

Today I walked down to the river to bask in the warm weather.  Transfixed by the glittering water, my concentration was broken by a passing golden retriever who had just gone for a swim.  I smiled as he went running for his owner, flicking the water from his fur.  As I took a deep breath of the sweet scent of freshly mown grass, it occurred to me that I am already in love.  I am in love with the way water rushes over the rocks in riverbeds.  I am in love with the way my skin seems to absorb sunlight after months of Vitamin D deprivation.  I am in love with stray dogs, Irish accents, and my cheeky students.  But most of all, I am in love with this time in my life and all of its imperfections.

 How could you not fall in love with this?