Philadelphia Spring

Philadelphia is a historic city and I had a few days to wander around to my hearts’ content recently. Walking down roads, old alleys and beautiful little squares — I found that what I appreciated most was the more advanced spring there than the one I left behind in Michigan, where Mother Nature has been tardy this year. Not so in Philadelphia. Magnolia and cherry trees were in full bloom and that lovely shade of pale green in the trees was quickly ripening to reveal darker more summery hues.
Perhaps of all the monuments and historic sites I saw, the one that made the most impression on me this time was the National Constitution Center where I saw “Freedom Rising” – an award-winning multimedia production about our Constitution. Inspiring as it was, one could not help but feel a disappointment, a disconnect – should I say, on emerging into the bright light of day where present realities bedevil and thwart what people want. Perhaps this is one reason I always find so much solace in nature. “Let nature be your teacher” the English Romantic poet Wordsworth wrote in “The Tables Turned” and those lines have always stayed with me.