Signs of Spring at Lina’s

Here it is the third day of Spring and no twinges of Spring Fever in sight (if, indeed, you can sight a twinge.)  I don’t feel energized as in planning to do a big Spring Housecleaning.  Nor do I feel like just lazing around a la Osa-the-Cat, enjoying the mild weather and the timely and very welcomed sunshine we’ve had these past few days.

I looked up “Spring Fever” to find out exactly what it is and how it manifests itself.  More energy or less?  And I found out that both responses to the season’s lengthening days can be signs of Spring Fever.  In fact, several websites talk about Spring Fever as being associated with SAD (Seasonal Affective Disorder.)

Somehow, that description took all the romance out of the concept for me.  I really think that there should be a few things we could just accept as givens without dissecting them to find their scientific causes.  I’ve been quite happy for years looking forward to Spring Fever putting the end to the Winter Blahs.  When I looked for a reason it occurs, I guess I was hoping for something more mystical than medical by way of explanation.

Basking Osa

I was happy, however, to find that there are others who agree with me… in a way.  Humanist Thomas Szasz, for instance, criticized the notion of Spring Fever’s existence and was adamant in his belief that “Spring Fever is not a disease.”

And I did like the concluding sentences in a 2008 Los Angeles Times article:  many of spring’s effects on the human mind and body are seemingly contradictory. Hormones do a partial job of explaining the seasonal epidemic of impulsive, giddy and amorous behaviors observed as the memory of winter fades, but much about the season’s influences remains mysterious.

As I was pondering some of those seasonal mysteries, I happened to run across Osa who had positioned herself in the perfect place for basking – on the bottom stair step in front of the east door which is all sunshine-through-the-glass-panes on these clear mornings.  I’m sure she doesn’t give a fig for hormones or serotonin or any of the rest of humankind’s careful diagnostic nonsense.  She was purring loudly enough to be heard in the adjacent room and her contentment was palpable.  Cats always know best.