Skip to main content

In Praise of Spring

I am glad I live in a part of the world that has seasons. Sometimes in the middle of winter, I think about going somewhere that is always warm.  Many of my friends head to warmer climates when the weather starts to get more challenging.  I am sure part of what I like about the seasons is the association that seasons have to the glorious world I see as part of God’s creation.  In fact, I am good with the classical image of the world as the body of God.  The world is God’s self-expression. 
   
This is certainly part of why I think the environmental issues are worth our attention.  I do think we humans have not done a very good job as stewards of our earth.  The sad part is I am old enough, I will get away with it.  I will likely die and be gone before we have to pay a price for the way we have treated things.  I am worried about my grandkids and their kids.  Maybe the sins of my generation will be paid by them.  Of course, that’s not fair.
   
So this is a good reason to welcome and reflect on this spring season.  I share my thoughts.  Spring is predictability and serendipity.  Spring is predictable because it comes as a welcomed relief after a cold, long winter.  Spring is life, just as winter is dormancy.  Winter can be depressive.  As I said, I am ready to give up on winter. 
   
I welcome the advent of the fall season.  I love the colors that paint my world in the trees.  And I am zestful when those first few snow flurries come late fall.  When winter is fresh, no one seems to mind.  But then it can drag on.  I get tired of putting on layers of clothes.  The biting wind from the north is a challenge.  Everything takes more time in the winter.  As it drags on, it does become depressive.  We know change will come.  Sometimes it is hard to wait.  It is a great reminder that we are not in control.  God will bring spring.  Be patient; be disciplined.  Be expectant.  These are good winter lessons for life.
   
And then spring comes.  If winter is depressive, spring invites us to be expressive.  Spring colors transform Winter’s drab into vibrancy.  I very much like the color green.  It is predictive of life and exuberance.  I recall a line from Annie Dillard’s book, Pilgrim at Tinker Creek.  She talks about the extravagance of God.  God is profligate.  That’s spring.  And all of this is predictable.  

Spring is predictably a better time for new resolutions than January.  The weather is better and our energy is higher.  The world is ready to go outside and that offers community, which differs than the isolation of blustery winter days.  Spring is the time to re-form and re-join groups.  Eating, exercise and enjoyment all are better with others.  If you want to live longer, make friends and ditch the loneliness. 

Spring is the time for some new actions.  By summer new actions form into new habits that can last a lifetime.  Spring is the time for new things.  Cultivate your curiosity, be willing to experiment and give yourself license to explore.  Hang out with people who are curious, experimenters and explorers.  Life will become more interesting.  That’s all very predictable.

Spring is also a time of serendipity.  Serendipity is always a good, felicitous thing.  Never fear or shrink from serendipity.  Spring is the time of newness, so no wonder it is the season of serendipity.  Most of us are much better at fate and destiny.  We think we know what reality is and we can deal with what must be---age, circumstances and the like.  But we can feel like rookies when it comes to serendipity. 

Too often, we have learned to fear the future.  We don’t trust surprises.  We might prefer pessimism, so things won’t get worse.  But you can always desire and welcome serendipity.  Serendipity is always for you and is a gift you want.  Start with the little things; life is actually quite lavish with serendipities.  Smile and wait for the serendipitous smile to come back to you.  Spring is a new opportunity for eye contact. 

Serendipity is often simple.  It is learning to care; it is always our choice to quit being careless.  Spring is a good time to beginning caring---for ourselves, for others and for our world.  Care is the simplest form of love.  Spring is the season for love, so spend time deepening and broadening your care into a fuller love for all.  Spring is the time for growth and development. 

Spring is the time the world comes alive, blossoms and flourishes.  Why would we not do the same thing!

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

I-Thou Relationships

Those of us who have read theology or, perhaps, those who are people of faith and are old enough might well recognize this title as a reminder of the late Jewish philosopher and theologian, Martin Buber.   I remember reading Buber’s book, I and Thou , when I was in college in the 1960s.   It was already a famous book by then.   I am not sure I fully understood it, but that would not be the last time I read it.   It has been a while since I looked at the book.             Buber came up in a conversation with a friend who asked if I had seen the recent article by David Brooks?   I had not seen it, but when I was told about it, I knew I would quickly locate and read that piece.   I very much like what Brooks decides to write about and what he contributes to societal conversation.   I wish more people read him and took him seriously.             Brooks’ article focused on the 2016 contentious election.   He provocatively suggests, “Read Buber, Not the Polls!”   I think Brooks puts
1 comment
Read more

Spiritual Commitment

I was reading along in a very nice little book and hit these lines about commitment.   The author, Mitch Albom, uses the voice of one of the main characters of his nonfiction book about faith to reflect on commitment.   The voice belongs to Albom’s old rabbi of the Jewish synagogue where he went until his college days.   The old rabbi, Albert Lewis, says “the word ‘commitment’ has lost its meaning.”    The rabbi continues in a way that surely would have many people saying, “Amen!”   About commitment he says, “I’m old enough when it used to be a positive.   A committed person was someone to be admired.   He was loyal and steady.   Now a commitment is something you avoid.   You don’t want to tie yourself down.”   I also think I am old enough to know that commitment was usually a positive word.   I can think of a range of situations in which commitment would have been seen to be positive.   For example, growing up was full of sports for me.   Commitment would have been presupposed t
6 comments
Read more

Inward Journey and Outward Pilgrimage

There are so many different ways to think about the spiritual life.   And of course, in our country there are so many different variations of religious experiences.   There are liberals and conservatives.   There are fundamentalists and Pentecostals.   Besides the dizzying variety of Christian traditions, there are many different non-Christian traditions.   There are the major traditions, such as Islam, Buddhism, Hinduism, and so on.   There are the slightly more obscure traditions, such as Sikhism, Jainism, etc.   And then there are more fringe groups and, even, pseudo-religions.   There are defining doctrines and religious practices.   Some of these are specific to a particular tradition or a few traditions, such as the koan , which is used in Zen Buddhism for example.   Other defining doctrines or practices are common across the religious board.   Something like meditation would be a good example.   Christians meditate; Buddhists meditate.   And other groups practice this spiri
3 comments
Read more