Spring is in the air…
Well, as of today, Spring is upon us. March 20, 2014 marks the spring equinox and the end of winter. If you lived in Southern California this year you may feel like summer never ended and we just skipped through winter and went right into spring. I guess that is one of the main reasons we are all crammed into this corner of the world, some of the best weather on the planet, am I right? But I digress.
I love spring, a new chapter about to begin, and a fresh new outlook on life. A new beginning where hope springs eternal. A chance to shed the old and invite in the new. As much as we may want some things to stay the same in this life that is a power we do not posses. Things do not stay the same. We are always facing change and evolution. Most people, like me, have trouble processing that the only constant in this life, is change.
No matter how much we want something to stay the same, it never will, time marches on and the old chapters end and the new ones begin. Nature provides an unparalleled education to us all with the changing seasons and days that grow longer as we get warmer. What a great teacher to us all if we would just be still and allow the lesson to wash over us and be embraced us.
The smells of spring are one of the biggest indicators to me of this change. We have a wisteria vine in our back yard and when it blooms its purple flowers, the sweet aroma is unmistakable. As I walk outside it can literally stop me in my tracks, as I inhale deeply, a smile cracks over my face and I just take it in. It is one of the best reminders of me to just stop and appreciate the moment of now. So I stop and smell the wisteria.
It is one of the hardest things for us humans, to just stop and appreciate the now. To not worry about the future or try and fix something in our past – to just enjoy the moment in front of you. I understand that not all moments in our life are joyful, that pain and sorrow can be part of our now as well. But even in that journey we must pause and take it in, as difficult as that is.
I take in that sweet wisteria aroma for as much and as long as I can because I know it will not be around very long. The seasons continue to march on just like the seasons of our lives. If you are a parent you see the constant changes in your children as they grow and mature, they do not stay babies or toddlers or even teenagers forever (Thank God) they are in constant flux and change. Another terrific reminder for us of this constant evolution we call life.
So embrace the change and the newness that it brings. Be intentional about truly seeing the moments in front of you as they unfold. They will never unfold in quite the same way for you ever again – enjoy them! So take a moment this spring to “stop and smell the wisteria (or whatever makes you stop in your tracks)” and open your heart and soul to feel the wonderful newness of spring as a smile cracks across your face and you soak it all in.
47 Comments
Chuck –
Since southern California has really one season, sunny days followed by more sunny days, I love the few drops of rain we get in “winter.” The triggers that make me stop and appreciate life are, the smell of BBQ reminders me of my Dad, the second I smell it I think of him. There are frogs in the creek near my house, that is one of the most relaxing sounds at night to listen to. Many times when I get near the ocean the salt air will help me reflex that life is more about the flow into nature than retreating into societies business. When I go to the mountains the pine trees remind me of how little I know, compared to the grow of a tree has had compared to me.
Neil,
Smell is absolutely one of my biggest triggers and like most of us I do not give it its proper place when I should. No doubt the smell of the salty ocean air certainly reminds me to take notice. Mix that with a beach camp fire and I will literally be stopped and brought back in an instant to a gentler time, as a young lad growing up in Pacific Beach, CA. It is my believe that in these fleeting moments we realize that all is connected and nothing is an island unto itself. Just a bunch of cells and molecules held together with a big dose of life giving water. Enjoy those moments as you watch your little bundle of nature grown and change like the seasons.