March is my least favorite month.
There. I said it. I feel very guilty about that since my husband’s birthday is March, but my dislike of March started well before I met him and hasn’t dissipated yet. March is a cruel month, stretching out the wait between winter and spring. And while I know that the spring will eventually come, March makes it feel as if it never will.
And seeing as how William and Mary hasn’t made it to the tournament in its past 320 years, the madness eludes me. Except that one time I did a bracket and won. Remember that, honey? And since I’m batting a thousand, I have retired.
March is long. It is cold. It is damp. It is unceasingly gray, with forecasts of low 40s and snow for the foreseeable future. It is the month of midterms and due dates, smugly nestled between the enthusiasm of a new semester and the promising glimmer of graduation. This weekend I have made it to page 98 of my thesis, an accomplishment made depressing by the realization my 3 committee members will be likely the only people to ever read it. But no matter how many pages I write (at least 20 to go), the sky outside of my office stays gray. 
And it’s in the middle of Lent. Somber, depressing, Lent. Lent is a time of fasting for Catholics (each person defines what their own fast is though), which lasts for about 40 long days.
But I love it. I don’t love it the sense of “oh my gosh! so much fun! this totally rocks!” love, but love it in the sense of I know it is good. It is hard, but it is good for me. It is amazing that no matter how spiritually subdued I am feeling, entering into this drab, dull season of the Church calendar can make me feel so alive.
I don’t enjoy it, but it’s good.
It’s what I always tell people about my time with JVC. Was it fun, awesome, amazing? Yeah, some days. But was it hard, challenging, stressful, overwhelming? More often than not. But it was good.
And I know that the earth taking this long, deep breath between snow and sun is good as well.
I might not enjoy it, but it is good.
Here’s the good thing about March: it is already more than half way over! March has actually been really nice in DC this year, but this post reminded me of Josh’s first March in New England. In February he was kicking a snowbank and rejoicing that at least spring was almost here. I was confused. A month later he was confused about why anyone would ever choose to live in a place where March is still winter.
I hope that Easter brings spring for you!
I am so there with you-March has always been my least favorite month. Here in Michigan in March I always feel like “enough already!”. Bring on the warmth of the sunshine, get some leaves on these trees and fill my sky with blue. The season of Lent helps me focus, accept and remain faithful in knowing that new life will once again reveal itself. One of the greatest blessings in my life was delivered in the month of March-and on the Feast Day of Saint Patrick-it is my husband’s birthday.