Spring has Sprung in the Midwest

Sending a wet hello from Illinois. The soil here is full of water. The puddles are growing around our campsite. Hopefully we don’t float away. As they say, April showers bring May flowers. I did just read that the Chicagoland area had 1 day of sun in the last 40 days…. Definitely not missing that.

It’s been a good change of pace from the desert. The desert is full of bridges over large washouts and they look out of place without any water. We’ve seen so much water as we traveled east back to the Midwest. The Mississippi River brings so much life along its banks as it flows to the sea.

I secretly think I was a few trees in my past lives. I feel a special connection to any and all trees. They’re so beautiful and majestic. I love to learn about our temporary home by trying to identify the trees around us. Oklahoma was full of blooming black locust trees, their perfume delicate and sweet. As we drove through Missouri (all in one day), the scenic Route 66 was lined with red buds, their minuscule purple flowers dusting the branches until the trees look like the remnants of cotton candy at a street festival. We’re camped under a budding sweet gum tree, the leaves unfurling like traditional flowers. The last time we were in the Midwest, the trees were barren, fortified for the winter ice and snow. The dogwood’s delicate white flowers outside of my mom and grandma’s place are tipped in pink. I hope they’re surviving all this rain. The mayflowers’ blooms are safe under their umbrella like leaves, preparing for May. It’s a beautiful transformation to witness just at the beginning of the turn of Spring.

The rejuvenation that spring brings is inspiring to me. The world is awakening to live life. I want to heed that call myself as we enjoy and witness the changing of the seasons. I see how nature paints with each color in steady strokes. Yellow was her first color. The palo verdes trees were covered in small yellow flowers, marking the start of spring’s renewal. Yellow Pom Poms (wasn’t able to identify them) adorned our sites along the Rio Verde and in Flagstaff. Purple and white follow in quick succession. Crocus and tulips are defiant, popping up to announce spring’s arrival. I didn’t see the saguaros bloom before we left the desert of Arizona but they should still be blooming by the time we get back.

Our travels back to IL brought us from the mountains and deserts of Arizona through the rolling hills of eastern Oklahoma and now the flat farm fields of central Illinois. The North America continent is so diverse, we’re lucky to have a chance to see her in all her beauty throughout the seasons.

P.S. Please check out our travel map. Matthew just updated it with a lot of places we visited in Arizona and Oklahoma.