How would you describe spring? Maybe with lots of rain, flowers, and a cool breeze?
Well, that’s not the case in central México. Spring is quite different here.
Spring means hot, dry, and arid. As a result, it’s peak season for wildfires. México has been going through a drought for the past few years, which has paved the way for multiple wildfires. We recently went to Morelia, Michoácan, and saw a fire blazing through a mountain. It’s really sad to see the damage a fire can cause not only to the landscape but to the quality of air.
Spring can be a difficult time of year, especially for those who have livestock and work in the agriculture sector. A hot spring means a shortage of water. Without water, it’s hard to produce our essentials, which drives the prices to go up.
Despite the harsh sun, many flowers and trees bloom during this season. Some of the flowers and trees you’ll see blooming are tepames (thorn bush that has small bright yellow flowers), primaveras (trees with purple flowers), nopales de tuna (a peachy flower blooms before the tuna forms), mesquites (they have bright green leaves and yellow long flowers), among others.
Along with all the blossoming flowers and trees, spring is a perfect time to see the creepy crawlers 🫣. You’ll typically see more scorpions, tarantulas, snakes, and other little bugs roaming around. People say it’s because they want to sunbathe, but who really knows.
On average, we kill about 6 scorpions a week in my home. Thank goodness I’ve never been stung before, so I’m not afraid to whack them, unlike my husband. He really fears scorpions because he’s been stung so many times. My dad has also been stung many times before. One time, I brushed a scorpion off his back! I walked into the kitchen and he had a scorpion on his back and I grabbed a towel and swiped it off.
Unfortunately, we recently had to kill an alicante (Mexican Kingsnake) that tried to slither into our home. I was so afraid and started panicking. My husband ran for his BB gun and killed it. We never kill snakes unless we feel it’s absolutely necessary. About two years ago, a snake killed my dog so we are very cautious whenever we see one.
We have coral snakes and alicantes in our neighborhood. Alicantes are known to bite and latch onto women’s breasts when breastfeeding. Yes, I know…it’s crazy! I’ll write more about it in a different blog post.
I enjoy spring, but I’m ready for summer (our rainy season)! What is your favorite season?
Let me know in the comment section below!
