Long ago and far away the late American philosopher and humorist Will Rogers was known to say, “Everybody talks about the weather, but nobody does anything about it.”
That was, of course, his nod to the fact that the weather affects us all in varying degrees but there’s not a thing we can do to cause it or change it; all we can do is respond to it and how we dress, work or play.
That’s why, of course, when the TV weather geeks say “snow,” we all run (or drive) to the grocery for milk and bread even if we’ve already got some, don’t particularly like one or the other or rarely consume much of either. We’ve just got to have some on hand.
Usually the weather follows this pattern: it’s too hot or too cold, too wet or too dry — too this or too that. Just like right now, for me it’s been too dry; a little shower would do wonders for the chicken byproduct and commercial fertilizer some folks are spreading on their pastures after taking out a mortgage on their first-born to pay for the stuff. Just as an aside, I wonder when folk who can do something about runaway inflation will realize at the rate we’re going that soon pork chops are going to be more costly than gold and the nickel candy bar will cost $11.
I say all that to say the weather is a big deal — so big, in fact, that folks down through the ages have written all sorts of proverbs and sayings about it, particularly this time of year and the month of March. Among them: “A dry March and a wet May fill barns and bays with corn and hay.” There’s also, “March winds and April showers bring forth May flowers.”
Also included is, “As it rains in March so it rains in June.” That one isn’t especially cute and certainly doesn’t rhyme. And don’t forget perhaps the most famous March weather saying, namely, “If March comes in like a lion, it will go out like a lamb.”
That, of course, is testimony to the reality that March can be the forerunner of spring or the dead of winter. It means if March comes in harsh (lion) it will end nicely (lamb). That old saying is often said in reverse, as well.
And the reality now of the weather this third month, as well as the immediate forecast for much of it, shows signs of both spring and summer. As I write this, it feels like spring — actually more like summer. And great kite-flying winds earlier this week. And somehow, the last few days of February and the first several of March are more like June or even July, just without the humidity.
But I remember — as do many local folks — March of 1960, not all that long ago for me but ancient history for this year’s crop of 7th-graders. It was in that ancient time that Chatham County, as well as a good chunk of the Piedmont, had snow every Wednesday, at least the first three, of the month. And I don’t mean a dusting.
It snowed.
Snow fell on top of snow. In some places there was ice on snow on ice on snow; it made for great sledding. Even if you didn’t have a fancy store-bought sled, you got along very nicely, thank you, on a big round metal Coke sign or one side of a cardboard box that recently was a refrigerator shipping carton.
As I remember, we went to school about five days that month. We went on Saturdays. The state just simply forgave some days. It snowed so much we got tired of snow.
So, are we in for more of that or something similar, or is winter really over? Well, apparently only the Good Lord and the groundhog know. But don’t be surprised if we don’t pay for these last several days of 70-plus degrees with a big ol’ honking blizzard about mid-March.
And, by the way, if you’re looking for a good saying about a month, try this one. “Why is the calendar so tired on April 1? Because it just finished a march of 31 days.”
Bob Wachs is a native of Chatham County and retired long-time managing editor of the Chatham News/Chatham Record, having written a weekly column for more than 30 years. During most of his time with the newspapers, he was also a bi-vocational pastor and today serves Bear Creek Baptist Church for the second time as pastor.