Sweet Spring Dreams.

As the weather here in New England prepares to shift seasons, it reminds us that change is a constant in life.  Even beneath the deepest blankets of snow and a frigid February – the coldest and snowiest on record with cruel winds and thick ice – spring was quietly preparing its return.  In late January, the sun took on a warm glow, hinting at its return to the northern hemisphere.  It is now early March and spring is shouting from the rooftops, melting the heavy snow winter deposited there.  As we leave behind our hibernation and begin shedding layers of clothing, our bodies began to shift and we move with joy in our step, our souls reach outward and we seek connection, visibility and sunshine again.

As in nature, many of us experience our personal winters, turned inward and shut away from the outside, cold, frozen and seemingly dead.  We trudge through these bitter days consumed by the misunderstanding that this is a permanent state; we lose faith.  Winter brings withdrawal and a turn inward; it can also bring scarcity and loss.   During the darkness of the winter season, it can seem as if everything we loved and dreamed of has slipped away.  In some cases, our career sputters, we lose loved ones and jobs, our focus and perspective shift to a focus of loss and depression.  The juicy goals we had no longer tug at our heart or seem hopelessly out of reach.  We may also sense our values are shifting.   We find ourselves in a survival fight caught up in the maelstrom of our lives.   Winter always requires surrender; storms can lock you inside for days, in darkness, reminding you of what you take for granted.

Your personal winter is a difficult time, but it does not last either – it cannot last.  During this time, change is already underway.  At the darkest hour, in the frozen land of loss, the shift occurs and although it remains unseen for a while, the movement is toward rebirth – the sun is coming and your spring is on its way.

Nature provides us with clues everywhere that everything cycles and spring always comes again.  Spring will come even when it appears that all is dead and gone.  Rejuvenation, rebirth and resurrection are all clues that no matter how bitter, barren and frozen winter looks. Once again, glorious, sexy, fertile spring is on its way, faithfully. – Diane