April Fools’ Day is a curious celebration dating back to the year when William Shakespeare had just married Ann Hathaway and was beginning to write and act. But April Fools have nothing to do with the wise, truth-telling Fools that populate his plays.
Scholars believe April Fools’ Day dates back to1582, when the Gregorian Calendar was adopted. Prior to this calendar update (which slightly reduced the number of leap years), seasons tend to slip around, making it hard to know when spring had begun and when planting time had arrived. Until then, New Year's Day was celebrated shortly after the Spring Equinox, usually on the first of April.
When introducing the new calendar, Pope Gregory declared that New Year's Day would henceforth be celebrated on the first of January.
Now in those days, the information highway was made of cobblestone, and frankly, quite a few French peasants failed to get the message for several years. When they continued to celebrate on April 1st, they were dubbed "April Fools."
While the Gregorian Calendar has been successful in keeping Spring Equinox in place, the seasons again are drifting. Due to climate change, spring is coming earlier in most years. Trees leaf out, flower bloom, and insects emerge earlier than in the past.
But migrating birds and spawning fish, over the centuries, have developed instincts to arrive in a place when food will be most available. Otherwise, their offspring will not survive. And that date seems to be changing.
We can’t change a calendar, but if we don’t change our behavior to combat global climate change, we are the fools.
