spring

Oh, give us pleasure in the flowers today;

And give us not to think so far away

As the uncertain harvest;

keep us here

All simply in the springing of the year.

— Robert Frost

How does the onset of spring propel your personal life into the year? Are you in sync with the seasonal cycles? What does that mean to you?

I am desperate for something to write, so I went to http://www.creativity-portal.com/howto/writing/spring.writing.prompts.html for a prompt. I chose the above photo, quote and questions.

I am not a Spring/Summer person. I much prefer the Fall and Winter. But it is still a joy to see the earth wake up and stretch after the long sleepy winter. I always enjoy seeing different blooms from day to day. The crocuses, which are the first, always delight me. I even love dandelions -- they are prolific here this year, too.

I am amazed how one day the trees are all bare and the next they are covered in leaves. I always want to capture the moment that the buds burst forth, but never can.

So, for the questions: Yes, I am in sync with the seasonal cycles. Spring always ushers in a time of painful growth for me. The summer is a time when I am stretched and challenged with a great intensity. It has been this way, noticeably for the past four years or so.

In the fall, things settle down and winter is a time of quite rest. There is some growth going on under the surface, but it is so gentle, I am not acutely aware of it.

So while it is a good idea to be fully in the moment-- to enjoy the spring without worrying about the fall as Robert Frost has said, I always keep my eye out just a bit for the autumn chill because I know that rest is coming.

I wonder if the plants feel this way? Is the intense summer growth wearying to them, too?

But as written in Ecclesiastes and sung by the Byrds "To everything there is a season and a time for every purpose under heaven."

I am not bemoaning my times of growth. Where would I be without them? I don't want to be a sapling forever. And the strain and pain does not wound me to death, it strengthens me to life.