Spring and New Beginnings

Spring is magical – filled with vibrant color, texture, floral aromas, and beautiful scenery.  The days get longer and warmer. Life begins to reemerge, and the world begins to bloom.  Spring signifies new beginnings. Apparent in nature, yes, but can you notice these things in yourself?

These sensory experiences – the colors, the aromas, etc. – bear meaning.  All of this information we’re taking in has an effect on us – whether we realize it or not.  We have unconscious experiences with nature, and those experiences stay in our brains long after the time has passed.  Imagine a song playing that brings you back to a certain time in your life. Or a familiar smell evoking past memories.  

This is how we’re connected to the universe, intertwined with all of nature’s ebbs and flows.

Once we begin to see oneness instead of separateness (both with nature and our fellow earthlings), we realize that there is some semblance of purpose and cadence to every move we make over the course of our lives.  What are the decisions that led you to be where you are? What if you had made a different decision?  Do you trust that the universe would have brought you here anyway?

Next time you are outside, really see nature’s tendencies, and how the theme of spring and new beginnings manifests.  There could be a day of miserable weather, with puddles to side-step and the light splashing of rain water on the backs of your calves as you walk (so annoying!).  Or it could be absolutely idyllic, with blue skies and a warm breeze carrying the smell of the tulips. It doesn’t matter, because they both have things to teach.

Think of the way nature goes underground, into a deep sleep during the winter months – resting and recharging for the impending spring.  I tell people I’m going into ‘hibernation-mode’ in the winter months because I can’t bring myself to leave the house once it gets dark out – which is pretty damn early.

And then spring is here – bursts of green and color, oh-so-many flowers, chirping birds, new smells in the air.  Some people get spring fever with the new vata energies stirring within and around. We get cyclic bursts of creativity and inspiration followed by bouts of writers’ block and stagnation.  We can’t have all energy all the time, or all lethargy all the time.

Finding balance is key.  And sometimes achieving balance requires a fresh start.

And beginnings can be scary.  They can be soft and gentle or they can come on like a fucking hurricane.  But regardless of how they show up, beginnings overflow with possibilities.  Learning new lessons, exploring new goals. But beginnings also come with the prospect of fear and uncertainty.

There is fear in the unknown.  But don’t fight it, don’t be afraid of it, don’t deny it.  It’s going to happen regardless of whether you are closed or open to the new experiences and new beginnings.  But it’ll be a lot harder and a lot harsher if you resist and stay closed-off.

Allow the changes to unfold and work with them instead of against them as life progresses.  

It’s easy to let past experiences, heartaches, and trauma lessen the excitement and the newness of a fresh start.  It may have been hard before, but that doesn’t necessarily mean it’ll be hard in the future (although it still may be!).  It’s easy to let past experiences, heartaches, and trauma cause you to harden.  You close yourself to failure or rejection, yes, but also to possibility and improvement.  We need to stay open!

I get it.  Way easier said than done.  I’ve been hardened (still working on it), I’ve been a cynic (still working on it), and I’ve been closed off to things (also, still working on it).  Having the tools is great, but the tools are useless if you can’t use them. It’s a learning process. And it takes a lot of reconditioning of your mindset and engrained way of thinking.

I’ve been on this journey for self-betterment for a few years at the time of this writing, and I’m STILL learning. I’ll always be learning. But that’s a good thing, right?  And that’s part of what travel is, right?

Rushing the journey is never as good.

Welcome spring. Welcome the new beginnings.  Take part in spring celebrations. Appreciate the opportunities that come along with the season of spring and new beginnings. Feel the warm(er) sun on your skin. Inhale the fragrant breezes of flowers beginning to bloom. Really see all the colors that decorate nature – you won’t have to look hard. Appreciate the new life that is sprouting up all around you. Plant the seeds of whatever it is you want to manifest.  Welcome the new beginnings that spring brings – in nature, and in your own life.

Feeling the spring vibes? You might want to check out this post on springtime, tulips, and the Netherlands!