(DF) MARCH: In like a lion, out like a lamb? ........ (part 2)

Seems like only days ago I was writing the original "in like a lion" post, and here it is the last day of March. I had hoped to make some sense of this old saying once and for all, but no such luck. If anything, I am more confused now than ever.

As you may recall, my confusion is mainly due to the subjective nature of what is a lion and what is a lamb. Where do you draw the line between the two. On March first, I decided that such a warm sunny day with a gusty wind was most likely an unruly lamb. But what about today? Today has been sunny, warm (almost truly hot) and with a gentle breeze. Does this sound a bit lamb-like to anyone but me? Does that mean that March came in like a wimpy lion after all, and that (heaven forbid) I was WRONG?

I do not like being wrong any more than anyone else, but the alternative is even more disappointing. If I was right in the first place and March came in like a lamb, and today seems to be a lamb also, then it implies that several generations of my family (on both sides) were suckered into believing this old saying when there was no evidence to support it. Consider that they all believed it completely enough to plan farm activities a month in advance and what would that say about my ancestry.

In case you don't already know, I will say it clearly ............ I am tenacious. Alright, downright stubborn and even bull headed comes closer to it. I can almost hear Anna chuckle already. Being so stubborn, it is quite hard for me to stop until I know for sure, especially when so much is at stake, so for now, I will concede that I may have been wrong about my earlier choice of the lamb on March first, in favor of watching this a bit longer to see if it is clearer with more information. In true scientific form, I find that the analysis of this year's data are inconclusive and require further study in order to eliminate more of the uncontrolled variables. In REAL PEOPLE TERMS, I'll watch how it works next year to see if this year was an odd ball.

Maybe next year we will know more, or at least have fun trying to find out. For now, let me know how the first and last days of March compared where you are, and enjoy the spring weather.

(DF) MARCH: In like a lion, out like a lamb?

It is already March and the feel and colors of spring are all around. Frogs are even croaking and chirping in the neighbor's pond, announcing the new season of growth. As always, the first of March is a day I pay special attention to, in the interest of knowing how the last day of March will be. For the month of March, "in like a lion, out like a lamb", or visa verse, is one of the innumerable little sayings I grew up with.

Some such sayings are pretty accurate, some are not so accurate at all, and others just seem a bit confusing. This, for me at least, is one of the confusing ones. Yes, I know it is really simple, and yes, I know that such things should not be thought of too deeply, but being of such an extreme curious nature, I simply can't help it.

First off, there is the question of how a lion comes in or goes out. Is it with a roar? If so, does that imply thunderstorms, a strong wind or simply any kind of fierce weather? And what about the lamb? Does it come in, or go out, with a gentle breeze, warm sunshine, or maybe even soft fluffy snow? Ridiculous questions, I know, but please bear with me........ it may get worse.

With my natural curiosity and tendency toward finding the real truth of a matter, made all the worse by my background in field biology, I am inclined to test these old sayings. The real question here is how to test something so subjective. When you consider that lions are normally only fierce when hungry or threatened and are otherwise gentle, nurturing creatures, and that lambs are often far from the passive little balls of fluff they are portrayed to be, you may begin to see my confusion. Don't worry, I will save the majority of animal behavior issues for later .............. much later. I also won't dig into the question of where this saying may have originated that my western European ancestors who passed it down, would have had lions to compare to (at least not right now).

For the purpose of this post, lets assume that lions are ferocious creatures that roar a lot and lambs are darling, gentle creatures (which mostly they are). Now, it becomes a matter of degrees. Is that wind really a roar, or the sound of an overly playful lamb? If it shakes the windows and rocks the cars in the driveway it is obvious but otherwise it is any body's opinion. Storms are a bit more obvious but not fool proof either. Warm and sunny with a gentle breeze ......... probably a lamb but warm and cloudy with a stronger wind is iffy.

Whatever the case, it has been warm and sunny here today with a gusty wind. Since I can find no really solid guidelines, I am saying March came in this year like a slightly unruly and overly playful lamb. We will just have to wait and see how it goes out.

I would love to hear any opinions or input on this old saying, or any other. As always, your comments are more than welcome.