Limbo Living

Lent, for those who observe, is traditionally a period of waiting. But one does not need to be a churchgoer to feel a sense of being caught in a holding pattern at this time of year.

March on the Island brings many gifts. On Sunday spring officially begins. But for the past few weeks the signs have been appearing everywhere. The first crocuses, snowdrops and buds on the trees. The gift of longer days, a trickle of minutes at first and then, last weekend, the hour leap forward. The Dairy Queen opened on Wednesday, Little League tryouts are this weekend, pinkletinks are on the prowl, the list goes on. We are marching forward and waving goodbye to the short, cold days of the long Island winter.

But in a sense we march in place, waiting still for the Island to fully awake and give forth, once again, its bounty of riches. We wait for an extended period of warm weather, no backsliding into snowflakes like earlier this week. We wait for shops and restaurants, shuttered since last fall, to open again. We wait for friends to return from winter travels. And we wait, perhaps most of all, to see what the summer economy will bring to an Island still suffering from the recession.

There is a palpable tension in this waiting. The excitement of wanting to experience the new outstrips the reality of time taking its own sweet time.

To be solely caught up with looking into the future, enchanting though it may be, leaves a hole in the past. Perhaps then, before we put all of our energies into welcoming the new season, a thoughtful thank you is due all those who stuck it out this winter, staying open and providing essential services to Islanders in need.

It is not easy operating a year-round restaurant or shop on an Island devoted to its summer economy. But each year a faithful few do resolve to keep the lights on during the dark months. The food pantry and the community suppers, in higher demand this year than any other, also deserve a round of applause. Without their support, the hunger for spring would not just be metaphorical.