The Return of the Pansies heralds for me the end of the Dark Winter a time me and many other people felt a lot of fear and struggle for all kinds of reasons, personal, economic or political. It was certainly a most difficult time in my life, as well as a wonderful time, and I learned and am learning a great deal about fear, confusion, delusion and other forms of mental disturbance. One is never done with the process of growing and facing yourself, I find. You just get better at managing and understanding it. To me, as before, fear is a space to cross, not a way of life or basis for making choices and decisions.
  None of this, at least for much of the country, was made easier by the onslaught of a brutal and relentless winter, not quite gone. The Pansies are defiant, and announce a different time. I believe next winter will be brighter, for a lot of people.