Somewhere in the world, September is Spring!
Do you have a favorite season? Growing up in the Great Lakes region, my favorite was spring when I was a young girl. Winters were beautiful for the first few snowfalls and sledding adventures. But then came the gray slushy streets and shortened days and cold that seemed to go to your bones. And it was time for spring.
I have a very vivid memory of one recess at school. Our playground had a concrete section with basketball hoops and places to play hopscotch and other games. But there was also a large grassy area with all the typical playground equipment and a garden. On that day, for the first time that year, you could smell spring in the air — that delicious scent of a warming earth. I was standing just at the edge of the concrete. There was melting snow on the nearby ground with some determined grass and a few flowers already pushing their way out to the sun.
I knew that our home garden would also start sprouting within a few days. The purple irises would join us again with all the tulips, daffodils, and other shared favorites with my Mom.
Even now, there is nothing more hopeful to me than seeing new life. Perhaps that's the genesis of growth as one of my core values. Those first signs of spring sparked something in me.
When I moved to Texas later in life, it was wintertime. But this was not the winter of my childhood! On the contrary, it was a relief not to shovel snow or worry about ice on the roads. The first year seemed like paradise. But then I started to miss spring. I even started to miss the winter – or at least the first snow! I didn't realize how much my life's rhythm had centered around those distinct seasons.
It seems that wherever we live, a key factor in our lives is adjusting to its seasons.
Just now, we're welcoming September and the first signs of fall.
But in Australia and South Africa, it's spring! They have a different transition happening than we have here in the northern hemisphere. And, in a few months, we'll be exchanging seasons again. Our spring will be their fall.
I find comfort in knowing that there isn't just one calendar for the world or really for any of us.
It's been my experience that seasons are one of life's best gifts. They keep us from stagnating. They keep us moving. They create a current of change that continuously pushes us to what is next. While some might argue that a lovely, mild climate might be ideal year-round, others would miss winter. Others would miss summer. That is the other gift. In many ways, we get to leverage seasons based on what is ideal for us in any season of life.
This is also why we must stay in design mode throughout our lives. Because there are always new and exciting factors coming in, and those that have finished are moving out, even if only figuratively.
Where do you see seasons shifting things in your life and work? One thing is certain, change will happen. Whether we are embracing and celebrating it is key. As with everything in our lives, our perspective and how we see it makes the difference.
Remember that everything makes something else possible. Especially seasons.
