Seasonality: Human and Non-human Patterns, Caroline Horvatits
On February 6, 2019, I began my observation of the Cherry Blossom on College Hall Green. In the beginning, I thought I thought that I would be observing a tree and the natural effects of seasonality on the environment. As time moved on, I learned that what was most relevant to my sight was human interaction in relation to time and space. I will never forget the patterns and observations I experienced as changes occurred at my site through time. My observations ended on April 21, 2019.
What follows is a ten-week story of Seasonality: Human and Non-human patterns.
# 1
This weather is quite odd for an evening in early February… Shouldn’t we see snow? shouldn’t the ground be snow covered? The sun has subsided, and it is 6:30pm, shouldn’t the air be frigid, blowing the naked branches of this Cherry Blossom? Not tonight, the weather is wet and rainy, the ground is soft, the trees are still, and the area is empty and hushed, except for the soft sounds of rain against the pavement and the low rumble of my car engine behind me in the distance. Tonight, the weather is poor, and the night is dark. The atmosphere is not inviting of human presence. Sun-down was sometime ago and the empty paths are lit by light poles reflecting different colors off the wet sidewalks. The nature of this season that we, mankind, refer to as “winter” is bleak.
Now, I would like to focus in on the tree — naked and motionless. There is so much beauty to this organism in nature, appearing so unbelievably raw and strong. The branches are bare, unprotected from the harsh elements of nature. The roots, invisible, are the strength, backbone, and support of this creature that stands so still in the night. As the seasons change, we will see the interaction between and within each element of nature that creates seasonality. I am excited to observe these changes and I hope you are eager to take this journey through time with me too.
#2
Today appears to be more like a February night in Bryn Mawr, PA. There is snow on the ground and the air is cold. The ground is very icy, the trees are still, the sky is dark, and the atmosphere is lonely. There is not much of a visible change in daylight yet, but the sun went down later than it did last week. The shadows from the trees reflect off the ice glazed layer of snow on the ground… a shadow of the cherry blossom casts from an unnatural source of light. The street lamp sitting to the left of the tree, and the bright windows of the Old Library illuminate the space.
While it appears that there is an absence in human activity, the ground tells a different story. The snow is filled with foot prints that create traceable paths across the grass. This is an interesting observation because not using designated paths is a rather unconventional way of traveling somewhere, yet it has become the norm. “Cutting corners” per say is not abnormal, in fact, we don’t even think about the fact that there are paths and we are not using them. Why are paths created if people are going to cut across the grass anyways? Does this reflect how fast paced current society is?
The tree stands relatively the same as last week. The branches look brittle and dead, but this is certainly not the case. I am looking forward to seeing the pink flowers blossom later during this spring season, and I hope you are too.
#3
Okay, so Mother Nature has officially confused me! You too? Three days ago, the ground was muddy, the air had lost its bite, and the sky was blue and clear. There were students walking about and the night was like one of an early spring evening (despite the lack of daylight). Today, a winter storm brought the snow right back. It has covered the landscape — the ground, the trees, the buildings, the light posts, the pathways…but surely it will be gone by the end of the week. These spontaneous, frequent changes in weather patterns reflect our current climate crisis. Nature is confused, even this massively powerful force that shapes life on Earth cannot regulate its patterns. This should be alarming, yet we don’t directly notice the effects of climate change unless we pay attention to them. Will the stasis of seasonality eventually be a forgotten process?
I did not spend much time observing this site tonight. It is cold and damp, the ground is coated with a thin sheet of ice, and the freezing rain makes being outside less than uncomfortable. People tend to spend time inside when it is cold and dark.
I have also noticed that the lights of Old Library have consistently been “ON” and “OFF”. On Wednesdays the lights have been “ON” and on Sundays the lights have been “OFF”. This pattern makes sense in terms of society’s understanding of time. Typically, people spend Sunday nights at home meaning there would be no need for this space to be unnecessarily lit.
#4
It is slowly, but surely getting lighter as the weeks go on. The sun sets later each day and the colorful hues of the sky are becoming less gray and less gloomy. The sky is the most noticeable change that is occurring to indicate changes in season. Because of our societal view of time, daylight savings coincides with the tilt of Earths axis aligning seasons with length of daylight. As a society, we enjoy spending more time outside in the summer, so we arrange our time clock to align with these understandings of daylight and humanistic preferences.
On the ground in front of me, there are faint marks of tire tracks, the landscaping crew must have been doing work on campus today. The ground is soft as the soil thaws from the sporadic bouts of warm weather. The grass is brown and muddy from foot-prints squishing into the semi-soft earth. While the weather in inconsistent day to day, over a longer time period it appears to change more slowly. We notice when the weather changes from 13°F to 50°F in one day, but because these shifts are not regular, we observe an average shift over time and this average creates a gradual a quality to seasonality.
The tree has not had visible growth across the media that I have gathered, but there is still life inside the branches. The naked tree appears dull adding an undesirable tone to the atmosphere and the lack of color does not catch the viewers eye. This aspect will change overtime as the flowers blossom in the spring.
#5
The sky… a smooth, popping, sea of light blue illuminating the Earth. One of the most fascinating changes through my media thus far is the sky’s color. Each image has varying shades and light exposure which sets the tone and emotion for each picture. In this photo, the beauty of the sky lightens the mood. Even though the weather is still cold, the ground is still icy, and the tree is still bare, the sky has a deep impact on how we feel.
This week I spent a little extra time at my site observing the area. I did this in part because I was in awe looking at the sky and because I was waiting to capture human activity. During this time, the blowing of the wind stung my face, my nose was runny from the change in temperature my body experienced, and my fingers were becoming more and more numb as time went on. I snapped a photo of two people walking diagonally across the crunchy snow from Great Hall to wherever they were heading. They could not stand to be in the cold for the few seconds longer it would have taken to walk along the path. Does this reflect the urgency to escape the cold weather? Or the “hustle and bustle” that we experience at Bryn Mawr?
For a minute, I closed my eyes. Feeling more vulnerable in the area without sight, I could hear nothing and everything at the same time. The area was silent, but the whistle of the harsh winds and the faint sound of cars from a nearby road were heightened. The loss of sight made me think about the precision of my other senses. I am not sure what this means about me or societies attention to detail in general…
# 6
Daylight savings has drastically shifted the amount of daylight that we observe at 6:30pm. Today, the sky is light, the air feels soft against my skin, and it is beginning to smell like spring. As I stood observing the Cherry Blossom, I saw many students strolling by comfortably in the warm weather. No one seemed to be rushing, and no one seemed to be bothered or overcome by discomfort. For the first time, I can visibly observe a shift in the mood of people passing by. The weather plays a role in people’s mood each day. In past observations I have stood in rain, snow, frigid air, gloomy skies, darkness, and these patterns have an impact on how we feel. For example, when it is rainy, we prefer to stay in, but when it is clear and sunny, we are motivated to be outside “enjoying the weather”. Why do we not enjoy the cold? Obviously, some people do enjoy the cold, but I would say that majority of people prefer “nice” weather (societal norm).
I do still notice that the atmosphere is gloomy with the lack of color present in the image. The grass is brown and yellow indicating plant death, the branches are still bare, a stark beauty from the bland colors present in the atmosphere. However, it will not be long until the Cherry Blossom flowers, the grass becomes alive, and the grounds crew plants flowers along the mulch beds of the building. Once everything feels alive, this presence and energy will be transferred to the people who are lucky enough to enjoy the beauty.
#7
I am patiently waiting for the Cherry Blossom to flower. Each week the average temperature gets higher, daylight becomes longer, and the presence of life grows bigger. Today, the temperature isn’t that warm, but the sun is out, which makes it feel warmer in the absence of wind. Over the past couple months, I have noticed the level of activity around me increasing over time. Earlier in the semester, multiple weeks past with no sign of activity. Everything was dark, cold, and lonely. The weather has significantly influenced people’s routine here on campus.
Across the lawn in front of me, I noticed that the process of lawn fertilization has begun. The soil has been pulled up and turned over, leaving little pellets of dirt scattered systematically over the surface of the Earth. This is such an interesting process. The grass is not given the chance to become beautiful naturally, however, we have the tools to influence the beauty in unnatural ways. Students are constantly cutting across the grass squishing the soil, so maintaining the lawn is necessary for grass to grow green and bright. There is a large focus of landscape aesthetics on campus. The beauty that we observe is not influenced by natural processes but by human knowledge and technology. From fertilization to grass patching to planting flowers, to sprinkler systems. We will achieve the status of having a perfect landscape. The Cherry Blossom as well was planted by humans to please the eye. While it does maintain its health in the natural world, it has been, and is influenced by human forces.
#8
There has not been much change lately. However, every change that has been noticeable has pointed towards the signs of Spring. The weather is becoming more consistent with blue skies and warm weather, conducive for the positive relationship with people and the outdoors.
Today, I looked past the Cherry Blossom. There are trees flowering just a few hundred feet away from the one in focus of our observation. It will not be long before the scene idyllically pictures a colorful, high energy, spring landscape; this is such an exciting sight! It is just a matter of time before she flowers and exudes beauty. I refer Cherry Blossom as a she because nature is often personified as taking on a female role. Traditionally women are viewed as being more “in touch” with he lands in both a historic and spiritual context. It is important to acknowledge the meaning of the Cherry Blossom, a traditional flower in Japanese culture known as sakura, just before we see them bloom in the coming weeks (Richman-Abdou, 2018). The flowers that bloom represent renewal and rebirth, which creates connotes a connection to motherhood and nurture.
The renewal and rebirth of Cherry blossoms are also synonymous to seasonality representing the transfer of energy and cycle of life among organisms. In the spring, Cherry Blossoms bloom and die within a period of only two weeks. The cycle of life is very delicate and beautiful, comparable to the shift we see season to season.
Richman-Abdou, Kelly. (2018). “The Significance of Cherry Blossoms in Japanese Art & Culture.” My Modern Met (blog). https://mymodernmet.com/cherry-blossom-meaning/.
#9
They days are longer, but they go by so much faster. Someone had moved a bench onto the grass today, so I ended up staying a lot longer than I usually do. This was a new, comfortable area to rest.
The air is crisp sitting in the shade, but everything is warm in contact with the radiant rays of the sun. The skies are blue with little cloud cover, and the colors all around are becoming more vibrant. In the background of the picture there are red flowers, pink flowers, and white flowers blooming on the smaller trees near Pembroke West. I am waiting patiently for what I call “my tree” to bloom. The weather has been consistently getting warmer, which is inviting of the flowering season. I have come to realize that other than during peak hours, this Cherry Blossom receives less sunlight than others on campus because Old Library blocks the passage of light. This could be a contributing factor to the delayed blossoming of the beautiful light pink flowers of this tree. Across campus many trees have already begun flowering… it is only a matter of time.
The grass has also become much healthier over the past two weeks. There are only a few observable brown spots in front of the tree, whereas in previous weeks, the grass has had many dead patches. This rapid growth has occurred because of the efforts to achieve the standard of beauty that I have discussed in past weeks.
#10
What a beautiful day! The Cherry Blossom has started to flower, there are people all around, and the beauty in my surroundings is overwhelming. Today, I approached this Cherry Blossom and examined the budding flowers up close. The buds look like little knots with reddish-pink leaves around the clusters of buds. There are thousands of budding flowers on this tree and the sight is amazing.
This is the scene that we have been waiting for all season. People are laying on the grass, the trees are colorful, the sky is bright blue, the breeze is warm, and the air smells of warmth and flowers.
There has been very significant change over the past 10 weeks. The weather has been very inconsistent, but the seasonality has been very noticeable. At the beginning of documentation, winter weather patterns were very prevalent. As we moved through time, the weather was unpredictable for a while as mother nature had to decide when she was going to unleash consistent warm weather. The kindness that she has spread made this space much more positive. Instead of running across the grass to get inside of another building as quickly as possible, everyone is enjoying the green grass and the hot sun beating down on their bare shoulders.
Through completing this observation period, I have had the realization that I am extremely lucky to be surrounded by such beauty all the time. Watching this Cherry Blossom, this living organism, grow and change along with the atmosphere around it has made me appreciative of reflection, space, and natural beauty.
