Reflections On Springtime

There has been a distinct feeling in the air the past two weeks- a feeling that only occurs as the world opens up. The grass becomes greener and the flowers begin to bud. The feelings of looser clothes, of flip flops, the soft sun and a cool breeze enlighten the senses. The smell of the earth and the occasional rain shower fill the air and the birds begin to sing their song. It is a time filled with hope and life and new beginnings. The season is spring and as the winter thaws we feel the outside world and our own getting a new life. Perhaps I am biased but there is no better feeling than the joy of waking up and feeling the world becoming anew. Yet, even with all its defining characteristics, what makes the spring so special? What allows springtime to be so rejuvenating? Is it the promise of summer and a true rebirth or is it simply an opportunity to romanticize and to dream? 

As I said I am biased, April is one of my favorite months. This may be due to the fact that I am an April baby, and even if I was not my twin brother, grandfather and several of my cousins are. Easter is one of my favorite holidays and commonly falls in April and always in the spring. The celebration of family and from a religious standpoint the celebration of cleansing and rebirth has always provided me with great comfort. The promise of summer and long days at the beach is just around the corner and as someone who has spent my whole living on the East Coast that promise has always felt like the reward for a long winter. My biases about spring and specifically the month of April aside, I feel that there is something uniquely special about spring: the buzz. 

You may have noticed this too. All around campus it is obvious, the flowers are budding and the birds are singing. More groups form as people walk from class to class, the farmers market is back in its fullest form, tour groups are larger, downtown coffee shops are busier, and everyone seems a bit more inspired to get something done. And yes this buzz can be chopped up to winter being hard, to people having seasonal depression, but I think it is something more. It is not that winter is hard (which it can be) it is that winter is a time of hibernation. For most of human history we have followed the same patterns as our fellow animals; to prepare for winter, to prepare for hibernation. But in the last 200 years or so of human history those patterns have changed and much of it for the better. It is a wonder and a feat of human existence that we have managed to create electricity, that we have been able to refrigerate our food and become connected to all corners of the world. And yet in the midst of all of these positives we have somehow forgotten that in the dark and coldness rest is more necessary. I think the reason that the spring feels so good is of course the warmth and the growth, but also the fact that in the spring our length of days stretches, we are given the luxury of the time of year aligning with our way of life. 

Especially for women, the idea of constantly bettering yourself, creating vision boards, and maintaining a “summer body” or some other kind of “effortless beauty” circulates in the media constantly around the new year. But maybe just maybe January through mid March are so difficult because the standard of starting anew before the world is ready is too lofty a goal, perhaps it is swimming against the tide. It is not to say that we can not achieve our goals at any time of year, and that we shouldn’t work against seasonal depression (get outside in the winter too) but rather if you are feeling as though you haven’t experienced a rebirth quite yet, give yourself some grace and allow yourself to move with the seasons. Maybe the earth’s rebirth is just what you need. So go outside, get dressed up, wear flip flops, work out, get organized, grab ice cream with your friends and smell the flowers. Spring is waiting for you, you just have to take it. I will leave you with the words of the late and great American poet Mary Oliver whose words have greatly inspired both my life philosophy and this article.

Peonies By Mary Oliver: 

This morning the green fists of the peonies are getting ready

to break my heart

as the sun rises, 

as the sun strokes them with his old, buttery fingers

and they open —

pools of lace, 

white and pink —

and all day the black ants climb over them, 

boring their deep and mysterious holes

into the curls, 

craving the sweet sap, 

taking it away

to their dark, underground cities —

and all day

under the shifty wind, 

as in a dance to the great wedding, 

the flowers bend their bright bodies, 

and tip their fragrance to the air, 

and rise, 

their red stems holding

all that dampness and recklessness 

gladly and lightly, 

and there it is again — 

beauty the brave, the exemplary, 

blazing open. 

Do you love this world? 

Do you cherish your humble and silky life? 

Do you adore the green grass, with its terror beneath? 

Do you also hurry, half-dressed and barefoot, into the garden, 

and softly, 

and exclaiming of their dearness, 

fill your arms with the white and pink flowers, 

with their honeyed heaviness, their lush trembling, 

their eagerness

to be wild and perfect for a moment, before they are

nothing, forever?

• spring