Catching Up on Daylight Saving

Daylight Saving Time is upon us again. On Sunday, March 13, most of the United States will spring forward and enjoy an extra hour of daylight at the end of the day. Hawaii and most of Arizona abstain; the Navajo Nation residing in the state observes the tradition.

Presently, it seems an innocuous event embraced as little more than a harbinger of spring, albeit moaned about for a few days as the alarm clock rings an hour earlier. However, the ritual’s beginnings stem from much more complex affairs including insects, golf and war.

The movement was first attributed to New Zealander George Vernon Hudson in 1895. Mr. Hudson was an entomologist looking for more time at the end of the day to collect specimens. In the early 1900s, avid golfer William Willett of England furthered the cause. Too many rounds aborted at the 15th hole due to darkness, perhaps.

During World War I, in an effort to conserve coal, first Germany, then England and eventually the United States looked to create another daylight hour. Later, retailers in the U.S. championed the cause. More daylight, more shopping was the motto as the economic engine roared to life.

Sometimes the roots of a tradition seem so distant from the affairs of the present day. However, in this case, particularly here on the Island, the original motivations are still readily apparent.

Retail economics and leisure activities both play important roles here. The Island takes the conservation of its resources and energy seriously too. Perhaps then it is the catching of insects that is the least prominent of these activities on everyone’s summer list, at least those older than ten.

Then again, so many summer pleasures do seem to revolve around the catching of things waves, the sun’s rays, all manner of balls. And perhaps sweetest of all is the catching up with old friends not seen since the previous summer.

So here’s to Daylight Saving Time as it beckons all those who have wintered elsewhere, home again to the Island.