Early Bloomer

This time of year, our little town is normally still scraping ice off our cars and sometimes even shoveling snow off our sidewalks and driveways. This year though we are being treated to a mini summer. Many of my friends and neighbors are busy cleaning out flower beds and mowing and taking the opportunity to start their spring clean up early. I on the other hand am nervous to do the same.

 My concern is that while this early spring is delightful it is "EARLY"! My plants are blooming and my Forsythia bush has even bloomed, that's great, but what happens if we get a cold snap and what happens when these blooms fade away. All my garden will have is the plants and no color left. This forced bloom may just ruin the cycle of my whole garden and possibly hurt my plants if it gets cold or snows again. All worries, for this novice gardener.

So pretty, but too soon!!

Yesterday Aly came to me upset because she heard some acquaintances talking about a party that is happening this weekend. Aly was hurt because as they were chatting the group looked specifically at her and declared that they were not inviting people that don't drink and don't know "How" to party. The topper was a friend told her that she would rather get all her drinking and partying out of her system now, because she is going to have a career some day and she will not be able to get drunk and party then, like she does now. That part made me laugh; I am not going to lie!
 These partiers are all 16, 17 and 18 years old. They are forcing the bloom now and then what do they have. All I can envision is a bunch of alcoholics at the ripe age of 20 or 21. I know I am over protective with my kids, but I always tell them that if they do everything now, they have nothing to look forward to. The world seems to be pushing our kids to bloom even though they are not ready, and I just keep shaking my head wishing it would all stop.

 My oldest Ashleigh has told me that when she got to college she was the most naive girl there. I know to her at the time it was a bad thing, but to me it was not. I was happy that her blooming started when it was suppose to. She bloomed at a time when she had more facts then made up fiction by a bunch of immature parties. Don't get me wrong, Ashleigh made some bad decisions, but she also stood up and took responsibility for them. She did not have to call home for help, because she was the one responsible, not her parents.

 Early blooming is exciting, but sometimes the fallout is not. I hope that this sun filled bird chirping time is not a precursor to some random winter blast. I also hope that my middle daughter understands that not being asked to "Party" was not a social death sentence, because when the time is right she will bloom!