March 2010

ON THE PORCH

RESTLESS REDEMPTION

By Rob Grogan

Even the most ardent snow lovers are itching for Spring, ready to file away Snowmageddon and take away memories of good Samaritans.  It’s on to the sunshine and warmth; on to the greenery that stirs beneath the final remnants of white stuff; on to the buds that signal rebirth ‘round the corner.

What will we experience this month?  What will dominate our Facebook posts or go viral as videos on the Internet?  Will new local businesses blossom?   Will teetering ones recover?  Will the tried and true reassure Fredericksburg’s economy?  The next 31 days will tell us a story.  Our 32 pages will give you a glimpse.

We’re hoping for a kind of redemption, like that witnessed at the Vancouver Olympics – where a tragedy on the luge track opened the games sadly and shockingly, but where athletes with fascinating personal stories, and countries with histories of medaling or lagging behind overcame injuries and the odds, performed at their peak, fulfilled their dreams, and gave us new heroes.  It was good timing that those Games took place this year.  Because right now, there’s a restless feeling with people wondering what spring will bring to their community and country…  No worries. There are ways to escape and ways to move forward. 

Make art a therapy this month.  Or grandchildren, or newborns.  Count on Daylight Savings Time to put more light and life in our lives.  Look for the crocuses to give yellow thumbs up.  Get kids thinking about June’s Soapbox Derby as the calls go out for registration… Awaken your spirituality as the holy season approaches. Reach for a higher consciousness as stewards of your lives and communities. Help someone somewhere.

Never, it seems, have so many people been willing to help other people, and at a time where many in the world face natural disasters and the needy right here in Fredericksburg lack hope, that is a timely gift of humanity.  Public money is tight, and so we look to our hearts to reach out and help, not judge.

It’s a restless time, yes, but there are signs of redemption and ways we can lift spirits.  Take a friend on an art walk or sign up for an art class. Help a neighbor pick up remnants of the harsh winter.  Drop an extra donation in the basket at church or in the plexi-glass box at the convenience store.  Become a Big Brother or Sister.  Take part in the SPCA auction.  Visit the museum or Heritage Center to learn about great women in our history.  Attend a storytelling at the library.

We can all be Olympic in our spirit and gold medallists at what we do for ourselves and our loved ones. We can look back on the past few weeks with relief that it was not worse, and look forward to the next 31 days with resolve and optimism.  We can make our own breaks. Lift our own spirits. Rise to the occasion. And be there for the friend who falls.

We are nearly to spring, officially and weather-wise.  There could be another setback before we get there, but eventually it will come.  Why wait?  Turn that restlessness into action, make that setback a redemption, and look for good things to come.  You might start right here with this new issue, and enjoy it cover to cover.