A Springtime Ramble

As you can tell from my recent blogs and the new on Patch, there’s been a lot going on in Reston lately.  That activity hasn’t slowed down this week, and there’s no shortage of things I could discuss in this space. 

I could talk about the fact that the Master Plan Task Force seems to be moving forward at long last, and discuss how their decisions could impact Reston’s future.  I could talk about the community feedback I’ve gotten after our forum about the proposed RCC rec center.  I could talk about the reorganized and reenergized Rescue Reston, and how they are preparing to renew the fight for Reston National Golf Course.  I could talk about my latest efforts to work together with organizations like RA and ARCH.

All of these would be worthy subjects, and I’ll probably write about most of them in the coming weeks.  But my mind is elsewhere this week.  The weather is finally showing signs of acquiescing to the fact that it’s spring.  My beloved Nationals have taken the field again (you looked great on Opening Day, gents).  And on the personal front, I just got engaged.  So I hope you’ll indulge me as I set community news aside for a week and focus on the joys of spring.

Spring has always been my favorite season.  Nature puts on a show, with all the trees and flowers coming into bloom.  (My daughter Leslie once called this the “color fiesta.”)  When I was a kid, I used to love walking around Lake Anne and seeing everything in full flower.  It felt like spring was throwing a parade just for me. 

Now that I’m older, I understand that the gorgeous colors of spring don’t just happen.  The trees have to survive the barren winter before they can flourish in the spring.  And all the lovely flowers and shrubs are there because of many painstaking hours of planting, weeding, and tending by our citizens.  Spring is the payoff for all that hard work.

As an organization, RCA is enjoying a spring of its own.  John Lovaas wrote a complimentary piece about us in Patch a couple weeks back, noting that RCA has been raising its game as an analyst of information and advocate for the community.  I thank John for his kind words. 

Our success hasn’t just happened.  It’s been the result of months and years of hard work by our Board and our volunteers, all dedicated to our mission of being the voice of Reston’s citizens, presenting them with information on political and social issues, and protecting and promoting Reston’s founding principles.  Our Board members have put in a lot of hard and dedicated work to get to this point, and I’m extremely proud of what we’ve accomplished.

And just as with our gardens, the work doesn’t stop when the blooms come out.  We’re still going full speed ahead, staying on top of the issues that matter to Restonians.  And we’re always looking for ways to be a stronger organization.  We’ve got plans in place to improve our two-way communications with the citizens, as well as to bring more volunteers and funds our way.  We’re not letting some good press go to our heads; we’re going to keep working to get even better.

Sometimes, though, even the busiest community leaders have to pause to appreciate the beauty that surrounds us.  And in between meetings and strategy sessions (not to mention wedding planning), I’m going to make sure I build in some time to walk around Reston and enjoy our spring pageant.

Those walks will be even more pleasant as the mercury begins to rise.  Because along with the gorgeous colors, spring also brings more outdoor-friendly weather.  That’s been a little delayed this year, but even now, I’m starting to see the neighborhood kids out playing when I come home from work.  There’s a group of them that challenge me to play soccer with them whenever I walk by.  I’m looking forward to many more soccer matches over the next few months, in addition to my nature walks.

At our community forum last week, Leila Gordon made a good remark.  She said, “Reston will remain beautiful as long as people care about it.”  She’s absolutely right; Reston is a beautiful place to live.  It’s that way by design; after all, one of Bob Simon’s founding principles for Reston was that “beauty – structural and natural – is a necessity of the good life and should be fostered.”

You see echoes of that principle in the debate over Reston’s growth and development.  One of the reasons that so many of us love living here is the beauty, both natural and man-made, that surrounds us.  It’s vital that we preserve that beauty in the future.  And that will take more hard work; it won’t just happen.

Beauty should be included in our Master Plan.  The challenge, of course, is that it’s hard to quantify.  In the debates over FARs and open-space percentages and street grids, it’s easy for the concept of beauty to get lost.  I imagine the final plan language will include mentions of “architectural excellence” and “natural features,” which are important.  But they’ll be meaningless unless we, as citizens, insist on a beautiful community.  No government or developer can impose standards of beauty; that’s up to us as citizens.

But I said I was going to put aside community issues this week.  It’s hard for me, because Reston is on my mind all the time.  But my goal for the coming months is to balance the time I spend working for Reston with the time I spend enjoying its springtime splendor.  I hope to see you out and about on Reston’s paths this season.  Let’s enjoy the beautiful season, and then work together to ensure that it stays beautiful for years and decades to come.