Spring arrived in March like a lion whose roar was a bit off key.

In January the skies offered us a huge astronomical event when Saturn met Pluto for a rumble. Little did we know there was something else coming. It’s just to let us know we aren’t in charge.

The 4th moon of the year is called the Pink Moon. This is the moon the Christian church uses to calculate where Passover falls on the calendar. This year Passover began at sundown on April 8.

A bright full moon appeared to occupy the whole sky from its rising in the east to its setting in the west.

Passover ends Thursday, April 16 at sundown. Some astronomers call this moon a Super Pink Moon.

It is not called pink because of its color, but because it was named for the plant species phlox subulata which is pink and means “with a spreading and straggling habit.” It comes in a variety of colors of blue-lavender, light purple, pink, or white.

“In the language of flowers, the phlox means our souls are united or we think alike. The lore of the phlox uses its influence over family gatherings and working together for the common good and planting it in the garden encourages family unity and harmony” according to Marilyn Sallee, native plant specialist.

The species phlox pilosa sprouts from a crown whose tips are unnotched. It is native to the eastern US where it grows prolifically.

In Bolivia and Peru it is a national treasure revered as a sacred Inca flower. Early Native Americans used the plant medicinally for colds and respiratory ailments.

I remember as a child visiting Aunt Lizzie Corley, Grandpa Corley’s older sister. She was fond of phlox and grew them in a rock garden in the yard of her home off SC6 /

They smelled heavenly.