Celebrating Spring!

Spring is a wonderful extravagant dance of nature.  The ground and the heavens commune to bring forth a thousand shades of green and countless colorful, fragrant blossoms to entertain our senses.  It's a favorite time of year for many, and most certainly mine.  Sometimes I feel a certain giddiness as I stand in the midst of all this awakening.  The urge to step off the comfort of the known, well-walked path and into the untested mystery simmers inside me, as if something deep inside me wants to cast aside reserve and enjoy life more fully. 

 

We can learn much from nature.  Winter into spring is a miracle of life renewing itself; observe and you will see it does so without dissatisfaction, without resistance, without unhappiness or lament towards change.  Although spring is undoubtedly the season that demonstrates the greatest visible changes, nature makes the transition with seamless grace.  There may be storms, lots of wind, soaking rains, but each of these is the challenge and the gift.  The wind that uproots trees also carries the seeds of change.

 

As I was walking my dog today, it was hard not to notice the thick layer of yellow pollen covering everything.  It seemed to slow us both down a bit.  Yet despite the heaviness in the air, the celebration of color and new life was clear...a carpet of purple creeping phlox, the redbuds in full regalia, azaleas bursting forth, the warmth of the sun on my shoulders, the periwinkle blue skies, a soft breeze on my face.  So many gifts!  I was reminded of how important it is to be aware of what clouds my vision of beauty and truth, and how easy it can be to confuse that which blurs our vision as truth.  It's just a plume of pollen that will soon be washed away with the rain. 

 

Spring inspires, resurrects, transforms.  The splendor of the season is an invitation to Now, to feeling more deeply our connection to the rhythms of nature, to accessing a sense of gratitude and seeing what is before us.  Enjoy these precious days of color and light!