It may seem completely unrelatable for most of the younger crowd, but way back in the day, there was a popular TV commercial that claimed Chiffon margarine was so good and buttery, it could even fool Mother Nature. The commercial ended with a memorable tag-line delivered by an endearing, but slightly indignant TV version of Mother Nature herself with the foreboding reminder,” It’s not nice to fool Mother Nature”. This was followed by a loud clap of thunder to get her point across. That admonition has always seemed like good advice to me. I guess I’m on the side of learning all you can about the important subjects of our time but also leaving enough room for some healthy skepticism and observation of the world around you. No matter what your feelings are about Mother Nature, you can’t deny the fact that in the past few weeks she has done some of her best work ever around these parts. Except for a few “pollen blizzards”, this has been, and still is, one of the showiest and most pleasingly temperate Spring times we have seen in a while. I know this makes it hard on the climate change activists, but it seems like things are going along pretty well with the onion growers and the peach farmers and everybody else that counts on agreeable weather and climate. I also noticed that the Robin Redbreasts didn’t seem convinced about the sky falling this year since they were a little lazy about getting down here. The azaleas and camelias hit the calendar right on the mark. They always put on a glorious landscape decoration right before Masters Week in Augusta. My Easter Lilys must not have gotten the word about global warming causing early blooming cause I’m still waiting for them to show up. Anyhow, if this climate is what some folks in the White House call “our greatest national threat” then please, give me another helping.
I suppose it’s a good thing that we have people in this world who are working day and night studying every conceivable facet of life on this planet. We need to know and understand as much about our world and ourselves as we reasonably can. Part of that knowledge and understanding is the fact that change, whether it’s climate or otherwise, is a naturally occurring part of our universe, and people will adapt to that change if sound logic and honest, effective leadership inspires them to do so. That has always been our history, and frankly, it is the story of existence. Regardless of the challenge, this country will step up and answer the call as long as there is trust in the process. Mother Nature is not a TV character, she’s as real as the rain, the wind, and the sun in the morning. I think we should leave her in charge. For the things that are beyond our control, there is only one final authority, and that is one thing that will never change.
