End of March

It is not my favorite time of the year, but there are several things about the end of March that could, arguably, make it a candidate for "Best Time of the Year." First is basketball. While basketball is not my favorite sport, I can't help but be drawn into the March Madness experience of high school and college. Living in Peoria is a dream for any basketball purist, when the high school state tournaments come to town. I try to go to the games every year and this year my high school Alma mater, Oswego, made it to the championship game for class 3A. I did make it to that terrific game even as Oswego lost by two points. It was a hard fought game that started out with lots of long range three pointers (not my favorite type of basketball), but then both teams started going inside the paint for hard fought baskets (my favorite kind of play). Then, that night I watched from home on T.V. as Michael Jordan's son played in a great game for the 4A championship game. This is one of the reasons I love living in Peoria, and March may be the best time of the year.
Second is college hoops. The tournament is fun to watch and predict. Two of the five or so teams that I root for are doing very well in this year's post season tournaments. Notre Dame is in the final four in the NIT tournament and Louisville is in the elite eight after demolishing Arizona last night 103 to 64. Exciting games.
I also enjoy the end of March because the earth is changing. We move from the grays, browns, whites of winter to the blues, browns and greens of spring and summer. Just yesterday, I noticed that the trees are starting to bud leaves. Green stems are starting to sprout out of the ground and the soil is soft. I can smell spring in the air with the warmer breezes and thawing ground. It is very nice and gives hope of warm, short sleeve weather up ahead.
Finally, baseball is just around the corner! In two weeks, the boys of summer will break out the lumber and start smacking baseballs around stadiums and baseball fields across the country. I can never quite articulate it, but baseball just has a characteristic about it that relaxes me, excites the competition in me, and slows down a summer afternoon/evening to a liveable pace. I love the game.
March, while it doesn't match up to June or July or August or even October, is filled with lots to be excited about.