It is February in Canada. Winter. We have passed the halfway point between the winter and spring solstice. There is light at the end of the tunnel! Snow is melting and I can see patches of grass.
Seasons are sort of a metaphor for life. Sometimes things are awesome and perfect, and sometimes they are dark and full of struggle. As with seasons, here in Canada. There is a rhythm that can be counted on every year. The cold and dark of winter, where everything is dormant, trees appear to be dead, there are no birds, no.…life…eventually gives way to spring. By March the days are getting noticeably longer. I’m quick to look out the window every morning in March to see if there are any robins. Robins are the unofficial sign of spring. They go south for the winter and come back in the spring. When we see a robin, for sure the end (of winter) is near! Spring means more sunshine, buds on trees, snow melts, grass grows, birds return and fill the air with their cheerful chorus. The days are warmer and I can go outside without being bundled so tightly I can barely move.
With each passing day, there is more sunshine, more birds, leaves on trees, flowers. We are able to open the cottage, and the risk of frost is gone. We can plant vegetables in an outdoor garden.
Once the cottage is open, that means summer – my favourite – is just around the corner. The sun rises early and sets late. I can wear shorts and sandals and leave the windows open so I can hear the birds and smell the lilacs. We can go to the cottage and walk on the beach, wearing only a swimsuit. Even though the cottage is on a lake, and not the ocean, the water stretches to the horizon where it meets the sky. Sometimes, the white sails of sailboats can be seen dotting the horizon. We can ride our bicycles outside and have epic adventures.
Eventually, though, fall approaches. The birds no longer sing and begin to fly south. The morning air is cool and crisp. The sun rises later and sets earlier. We need jackets and long pants. We must close the cottage until next year. The leaves change colour, which is beautiful with all the reds, oranges and yellows…. but that also means winter is coming. Again.
Life ebbs and flows just like the seasons here in Canada. Where we are the temperature can swing between -20 degrees Celsius to +35 degrees Celsius. That is the difference 6 months can make. No matter which season you prefer, eventually it will come. And eventually it will end.
So when things are tough in my personal circumstances, whatever that may mean, I know that like the season, this too shall pass. It may feel like its lasting forever, but it doesn’t. It will end and give way to something better. Eventually. That also means that when things are beyond awesome and I’m beside myself with gratitude and happiness, that I need to fully enjoy that time, because it too, will end. Not to be negative, but that is just the way of things. It can’t always be awesome, and it can’t always be awful. Realizing that life is like seasons which warm and cool, come and go, helps me to just stay focused on what I need to do and know that even if I don’t like what is happening, this too shall pass. And brighter days are ahead.
If you’re in a season that you love, fully embrace and enjoy it while you can. If you are in a season you despise, know that it will end. This too shall pass. And soon you will find yourself in a season you love once again.
