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L
is for laughter. April Fools’ Day at the beginning of the month gives
people an excuse for practical jokes and fools’ errands, even if the
reason has been forgotten. There’s an account from 16th century France
about a change in the calendar, moving the New Year’s celebration from
April 1 to Jan. 1. Some folks who didn’t know about or believe the
change continued to celebrate according to the old calendar. They were
called April fools. In France, the term used is poisson d’avril (April
fish). Given a choice of being a fish or a fool, I’d just as soon be an
April fish, which sounds funnier to me.
 I
is for intermission. When schools have spring dramatic productions and
concerts, there’s usually an intermission or two. Beyond that, many
schools have a spring break, or at least a brief Easter vacation, giving
students an intermission from classes. Whether or not you have time off
from regular duties in April, you can have a mini-vacation whenever
you’re outdoors, with spring beauty all around and temperatures more
moderate than in summer. Easter itself is a pleasant intermission in
April. Sometimes people who attend extra-early worship services finish the
special activities by nine or 10 o’clock in the morning and have more
time left than usual to relax before another workweek begins. Even my
everyday watch took an Easter intermission. Since the store with
replacement batteries also took the day off from business, the pause in
time continued.
 R
is for resurrection. The essence of springtime is renewed life, as
perennials from trees to asparagus show new growth, and creatures from
bugs to bears become active. I’ve heard that among workers at one
company, April is a popular month to retire. It’s another example of
starting a new life. Resurrection is most specifically celebrated in the
church festival of Easter. In
fact, there’s an Easter hymn called “The Day of Resurrection” – a
venerable eighth century text more recently linked to a free-spirited
descant.
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Now let
the heav’ns be joyful,
Let earth its song begin,
Let all the world keep triumph
And all that is therein.
Let all things, seen and unseen,
Their notes of gladness blend;
For Christ the Lord has risen,
Our joy that has no end! |
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 P
is for planting. Though planting is part of the usual work among farmers
and gardeners, the official tree planting observance, Arbor Day, was
initiated by a newspaper publisher. He wanted to plant the idea of
planting as well as the trees themselves, and his plan succeeded. The
observance of Arbor Day has grown to include all of the United States and more.
Although the date varies from place to place, it’s an April observance
in 32 states, including 21 with Arbor Day on the last Friday of the month.
Planting takes other forms as well, and stores are ready to encourage us
with packages of seeds, flats of bedding plants and bags of soil. Even
without a plot of ground, people of all ages may catch spring planting
fever.
 A
is for April, from the Latin word aprilis, meaning “to open.” Buds
open into flowers and leaves, people open their windows, spring opens the
way to summer, and Christians everywhere rejoice because of the open,
empty tomb.
[Mary
Krallmann]
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