Time for celebration of life

This is the time for trees to shed their leaves, this is also the time for new leaves and sprigs to sprout on them. Most of all, this is the time for flowers to run riot. Leaves coming off their branches in a leisurely fashion do not make a statement as strong as it is done in the western hemisphere. Even before their fall, the leaves redolent with colour comparable only with the vermilion splashes of the setting sun in the western horizon on a clear day announce their last flicker before fading into oblivion in the winter waiting in the wing. In this part of the world, though, not all trees shed their leaves and even those which drop do not assume the colour of their life to create an unearthly spectacle. But they perhaps compensate for this lacking by the new leaves which tentatively appear with pinkish colour soon to get shiny green.
Threes putting on twigs are different, so are the ones that do not bother to have new leaves. Instead, they go for flowers bright and resplendent with colour. The stark branches of shimul (bombax) are no longer seen because of the flowers that compete with each other in order to make their presence felt. Krishnachura (flame tree or flamboyant) and palash (flame of the forest) appear in their full glory to give the spring its special beauty. The air breathes life into the world of flora with birds such as cuckoo humming all around. The known world transforms into a different one plunged in ethereal beauty. The verdant trees and forests start whispering joys. Nature becomes so alive that it fills the hearts of people of all ages with the sheer contentment of living on this bewitching planet.
Spring arrives in its regal attire and appreciative minds welcome it with songs and poems. The leaves that quiver and dance in the restive breeze of spring create a sequence (dance mudra) of its own, the flowers that dazzle eyes of the beholders weave an enchanting spell without match and all know it is the time for regeneration of life, celebration of life and expressing oneness with Nature. The weather is neither hot nor cold. Such weather is most welcome because people do not have to bother with warm clothes nor are they required to suffer under the scorching sun. One wishes if there were no end to this health-giving moderate weather!   
In the cycle of seasons, there is no other season that has comparable charms and beauty to captivate human hearts. Perhaps a dewy Autumn morning with sheuli (night jasmine) flower sending its soothing scent comes closer to the life-giving spring time. Before the advent of winter, the autumn in this part of the world too is a time when heat ceases to be at its extreme and a thin layer of opaqueness envelops the surrounding. That misty cover has its own beauty unlike the clear and translucence ambience, special to the spring only.
Yet not all are fortunate enough to enjoy Nature's bounty because there are morose in the human kinds and then there are others who are wretched enough not to have time for wondering at the grand design of Nature.
How many people have been taught in their childhood the names of trees that stand on the roadsides, in the parks, villages or forests? People cannot identify themselves with flora and fauna because they have not learnt to know those by name, wonder at their changes in different seasons. There is a pattern everywhere in Nature. Once familiar with their way of life, trees birds and animals are no longer considered alien or outrageously different from human beings. Human life is incomplete without appreciation for the flora and fauna that have created the necessary condition for survival of all living beings. Spring is the ultimate expression of bursting life in all its vibrancy. Let this spring make everyone happy and give a rewarding experience.