In like a lion, out like a lamb

Dear, Dear, Miss Weston. Our lovely fourth-grade teacher. In grade school, we decorated a bulletin board in our classroom every month for a particular seasonal theme. March was always “In like a lion, out like a lamb.” We took the March adage for granted for many years, just assuming that the March theme would have drawings of lions and lambs, just like the April theme was “April showers bring May flowers.”

By fourth grade, we were ready for answers. The April observation may not be true in Kentucky (March was usually rainier and flowers were bustin up by April), but it was pretty straight forward. But March? What did lions and lambs have to do with anything? Was this a Catholic thing like Daniel in the Lion’s Den and Christ the Lamb of God? It didn’t seem like it since we didn’t draw Jesus and Daniel on the bulletin board. It was strictly a secular animal drawing. Poor Miss Weston didn’t know.

Our class came to consensus that this was the year we needed to know--fourth grade, we were big kids that changed classes now—and we posed the question. Miss Weston actually said, “I don’t know.” It was the most honest and straight forward admission from an adult, let alone a teacher I think I’d ever experienced. I swear Miss Athens our third grade teacher made up an answer and said “’Cause that’s why!” to everything. (She also frequently said it was because she was from Indiana and we were from Kentucky.)

Many years later I moved to Chicago, never forgetting the mysteries of “In like a lion out like a lamb.” It seemed like no one knew what it meant and that everyone took it for granted. Until my first spring in Chicago. And then I discovered the true meaning of March’s bulletin board. March starts out as horrible as the rest of Chicago’s winter--freezing temperatures, terrible gusty winds, possible snowstorms—and ends so beautifully and sweet that you’d have never known about the interminable winter.

Chicago in March, the sun finally comes out and shines so beautiful. In March the tulips finally push through, and some of the summer’s perennials start to think about greening. In March, everyone dry cleans their winter coats for another short summer of storage. In March, everyone washes off the last of the road salt and the streets have colors again as the cars lose their gray coating.