For weeks I’ve been staring out my window at bare forsythia branches, almost willing them to reveal the slightest whisper of yellow.
Finally, the other day, I saw it—the hint of yellow I’d been squinting so hard to detect seems suddenly to have arrived in full flower.
Snowdrops and purple and white crocus had already begun dotting neighbors’ lawns and, next, daffodils trumpeted the arrival of spring. I awoke to birdsong as robins, cardinals, and chickadees busied themselves in building nests to cradle new life.
Then, of course, it snowed again.
I know, some of you in sunnier parts of the country—and even in warmer places around the globe—have already been reveling in the sights, sounds, and joy of the return of spring.
Here in New England, we’ve been longing to put another long, dreary, cold winter to bed for good. I’ve grown weary of my sweaters, and can’t wait to find my flip-flops and dig my toes into the sand.
There’s something about the return of light, sunshine, warmth, and color that just seems to help my soul breathe.
The other day when it snowed, I was tempted to feel discouraged. Then I remembered a story from “The Chronicles of Narnia” children’s series. Aslan, the mighty lion, returned to Narnia which had been lingering under the spell of winter for as long as anyone could remember. He shook his mane and the spell was broken. The snow began to melt and spring returned to the land of Narnia.
Each winter is different here in terms of snow accumulation and of temperature highs and lows. But one thing endures—in the rhythm of seasons fading and unfolding, by the time the last mound of snow has finally melted, the earth seems to sing a song of joy.
We may yet see a flurry here in New England—and perhaps a few will yet come your way—but the spell has been broken. It’s a time for beauty, renewal, new life, and celebration.
I wish you much joy this weekend. And please let me know, in the comment box below, where you are seeing signs of new life and beauty around you.
I really like your blog! I am a mad keen angler so your blogs really appeals to me and my friends. Thx.
How restorative to read all the posts. Wandered down my garden this morning – through very long grass – much too much rain this week to cut it. But the upside is that the garden is absolutely verdant – different shades or green everywhere. The irises and lily of the valley are blooming – as are the dandelions and there is even asparagus to pick for dinner. Made me late leaving for work but…..
Hello Ruth,
Such beautiful comments from all. Here in St. Lucia it is warm/hot all year round but from November it starts to cool off in the evenings and the weather is delightful for the next few months.
During our rainy season everything gets washed by the rain and the trees and plants sparkle.
I have a serene view from my balcony – mountainous coastline – yachts in the bay.
We are still in the dry season so the ground is dry but the mango trees in my garden are proudly showing off their flowers – fruit to be in a month. The sour-sop and plum trees are bearing and the sugar apples too. The moringa tree is also in full flower. We are thankful for all that we have.
Enjoy the season,
Susan
Hi, Here in Western Australia it is Autumn a great relief after a very long hot summer! grass is becoming greener and the days are definitely cooler and shorter… what is even better we have now had some welcome rain. My rose bushes are much happier with the cooler weather. Each season has its own beauty! blessings from Ella
In Minnesota lawns are greening, birds are singing praises of spring, and people are so enthusiastic in welcoming the sun and warmer days even if only 1 or 2 days at a time. There’s such energy of life and possibilities bursting forth even before my first flowers appear.
The Northwest is a wonderful haven for tulips, now delightfully showing off brilliant colors. The
Skagit Valley Tulip Festival, north of Seattle, attracts hundreds of yearly returning visitors admiring huge fields full of these multicolored flowers, grown from Holland bulbs. Now we really know spring has arrived!
My Lilac and Japanese Maple are bud early in the year, and they are ready. A friend helped me clean out the shed and found a bird nest in an open box up in the rafters. It looks like a finch nest, and has 5 brown speckled eggs in it! We replaced it with a stable board underneath it. I think it’ll be okay, but it’s something to watch for now! Our robins have at least one nest going in the carport and I found a broken egg on the ground 2 weeks ago.
A beautiful day today in rural Kent (England), lots of blossom and wild flowers. We’ve heard the cuckoo for four days – a harbinger of spring for us.
Today, we had a swarm of bees from one of our hives – very early indeed in April. I’m allergic to bee stings, but the swarm was fascinating to watch. I kept an eye on them as they slowly climbed from the long grass where they had settled into a large cardboard box, to be carried later to their new hive. (My husband was hastily setting up a hive for them.)
I stood and watched, with bees calmly but busily buzzing around me. Absolutely no fear on my part, just a sense of privilege at being so present for a little while and conscious of the presence of the amazing fellow beings; they acknowledged me as I acknowledged them. A true Aha moment.
Marianne
Ruth, it is true! Time to stop and breathe in the smell of spring; to feel the sunshine on your back and face; and we too have birds coming back. I heard my first hummingbird yesterday. I have a friend who relies on the date of April 20th to hang her feeder. I am now inclined to do the same.
We have experienced a particularly long winter in Colorado this year (like the old days) and we all have spring fever. It is wonderful to watch everything begin to break through the ground.
Thank you for taking the time to remind us that we should stop and enjoy this beautiful renewal and rebirth!
I have been in awe of the sun- and the moonlight over the last fortnight and the sound of the morning chorus waking me up far too early at dawn! Sitting out at the patio at dusk listening to the ongoing birdsong and taking in the spirit of the spring with bats zooming in and out in a magical dance sequence is re-awakening me to the promise of this new season. So much colour, fresh smells and energy all around me is almost too much for me to bear. How can I keep up with the ground elder and the bindweed which seem to be eager to overdo me and take over my flowerbeds!
And the birds and the bees!
This place and this time makes me contemplate and to appreciate how lucky I am to be here.
The brilliant snowdrops have been and gone and so have the Tete a tete daffodils and the wild primroses but I still have a bank of forget-me-nots and cowslips in full bloom in front of a field of rape which looks wonderful in the morning sun, mid-day sun and the evening sun. The pheasants and the moor-hens are calling. Rebirth and the lust for life surrounds us, calls us and connects us to the cycles of life, as well as the seasons and the wonder of life……and to the interconnectedness of us/it all.
Oh, “What A Wonderful world”. Not forgetting the Robin who keeps me good company as I’m digging, weeding and planting in my garden.
Thanks Ruth for sowing the seeds for these thoughts…..
and happy spring time to us all.
Oh, Ruth, you put into words what so many of us feel as we are restored to our best selves by the beauty and music of nature. I have one of those little recorders that I use for teaching, but on it now, I have “collected” the sound of sleet swishing through the winter air, the gentle rain of Spring, the ocean of air whooshing through my trees, and the crash of waves along a beach as the tide comes in. I’ve discovered that, although I didn’t know I was such a visual learner (teacher) until 20 years out of college (!!), sound, too, is an integral part of my being, and my response to my students.
Some years ago, a dear friend of mine, Betty Jacobi, founded an institute dedicated to music therapy. It’s based in Savannah. The possibilities in Music Therapy seem wide and deep, and like Play Therapy, are skills that clients (non-therapists) need to have developed as part of their own growth to wholeness.
An anecdote to share. A couple of weeks ago, my two daughters and I were returning home from a funeral. We were taking (by mistake) “a scenic route” through rural Kentucky, along the Ohio River. It was a glorious, sunny day and I was savoring the leisurely pace of the journey while my daughters were less enthusiastic – talking about how much faster we could be moving on the Interstate. Suddenly, an enormous bird flew almost directly at us. As it got closer, we could see a large fish in its talons. Just as thebird lifted away we could see that it was a bald eagle. An amazing gift of encouragement to live in and ENJOY the beauty of now.
A couple of days ago I was stood, chest-deep, in a field of flowering oil-seed rape, the vibrant acid-yellow stretching all around me and the honey scent of the flowers soaking into my lungs. A swallow swooped over the crop, and bumble bees were gathering nectar. Pure bliss.
Thank you Dr. for your inspiring mail. I need to know more on Slowing Down, please.
Paul
Robins singing their lullaby in the evening so peaceful so loving.. Beauty … Hope … Love
Thank you, Ruth !!! You are truly an inspiration !! I so appreciate your reminding me of the
beauty of the world and the soul.
In my garden, the wisteria is spreading its clusters of mauve perfumed flowers up to the first floor so passing under I stop to breathe in it’s glory, and the climbing rose with its tiny white blossoms vies in sweetness……life can be so incredibly beautiful, marvelous and offer such extravagent presents …so gratitude, gratitude…..
In Colorado we don’t have spring. Instead, springtime in the Rockies is an alternation between summer and winter. One day we have heavy snow and the nest day the sun melts the snow and a tree blossoms beautifully. The following day a hard frost kills the blossoms, but we know that leaves and other blossoms will come in time.
In graduate school in Oregon, I was shocked to find spring emerging everywhere in one glorious week when everything seemed to bloom at once and nothing froze after that.. But nowhere can match your New England autumns.
Enjoy
My experience here in Michigan has been similar to yours in New England. Daffodils and crocus on the south side of my home began to sprout up and bloom a few weeks ago, and then we had a terrible hale storm with 70 mph winds, and a two day power outage. I looked at my flowers laying flat on the ground and thought, at least I got to enjoy them for a few days. But today, I see that they have come back to life, and although they are not standing totally upright they are in full bloom. Sometimes life is like that. Spring is here again.
I am currently in Maryland & spring feels like it’s trying really hard to stay…buds are starting to emerge from trees and birds are chirping more…there is still a chill in the air but warmer & sunnier days are ahead…
I return to the west coast soon and do look forward to the California spring..
Here in Maryland we have had at least 6 major snow storms. A dismal record. It actually snowed last week this past week, on Tues night, the second night of Passover. Very dismal. I am I the process of having my upstairs master bedroom and two baths renovated. It is messy. But the bedroom paint job is finished. I picked the palest blue with white trim. The two windows have no blinds now and thru each window I see white and pink crab apple trees doing their very best to bloom. With the blue hue in my room and the blue sky see through the windows, it is as if the trees have melted through the window glass and come into my room. Today I can see the small pink and white buds straining through their coverings and I am excited for them and for me. We are finally going to have our pink and white spring riot of color. There is a huge line tree across the street that serves as a background for the show to come. The hostas below, surrounding the crab apple tree, are pushing through rapidly to welcome the blossoms. Winter is becoming a memory.
Hi, Ruth,
We’ve had a long winter, too, but as the spring gently overcomes the cold, I’m seeing a different kind of renewal in my older clients.
My commitment to trauma-informed therapy has led me to training in EMDR, and I am seeing genuine warming and healing in people who’ve been carrying pain from 80+ years ago. To hear a woman who was neglected and abused say she “feels whole” for the first time is a reminder that healing and renewal are possible at any age.
Thank you for everything you and your team do to advance healing for the world, and Happy Easter!
My fear for the Blackbird standing on the edge of the highway 6 ins from the passing trucks trying
to cross the highway with food in beak to his nest on the other side and mother duck with 5 just
hatched babies about to cross to water on the other side
It’s the truth.There is something about return of light,sunshine,warmth and colour that help our souls to breathe.We feel just like that in Zadar,Croatia too.
Happy Easter!
Beatriz Norte de España..Fue un invierno muy lluvioso y mucho aire,pero espero poder ver la primavera mejor, con esas vistas de nacimiento de sol y su postura sobre el mar,y los arboles en flor y estas playas preciosas,con todo esto,espero animarme a disfrutar,que lo necesito! Todo lo mejor para todos¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡
Thank you Ruth for such beauty in describing. I am on the other side of this planet and a gorgeous autumn has arrived. However I originate from the Northern Hemisphere and your lines brought back touching memories of a true season “spring”. And its feather light, yet so hopeful and promising and invigorating touch on the soul. Thanking you warmly.