Having grown up in Jersey City and attended a private all girls school, a sure sign of springtime were the May crowning celebration of the Virgin Mother Mary, lengthy, sacred prayerful mysteries of the rosary along with May Day festivities as we donned our flower wreaths and whirled around the May pole.
Every season, Spring reminds us of Her resilience, how the lemon daffodils and plum hyacinths emerge from the frozen ground as they reach out towards the Light. Springtime invites us to be grounded in the paradox, a need for balance amidst the harsh realities of our violent world while taking in the blessings of springtime. She welcomes us to trust in the cycle of hope.
Spring summons us to be mindful and grateful too. How can we not embrace Nature's rapture in all of its vast and beautiful waterways, spring wildflowers and the ospreys who cirlce freely then sit atop their nests taking in grandeur. Mother, plant ecologist and educator Dr. Robin Wall Kimmerer urges us to share in her indigenous elders' guidance, Mother Earth asks little of us, except to be mindful and appreciative of all that She gives us.
what She whispered to me today,
lean on Spring's promise even in the groundlessness of humanity
press on, breathe, make art,
show up and be you,
stretch where the bluebells bloom . . .
i respond softly,
thank you for it all --
the crabgrass and chickweed, the buttercups,
the mole holes, the rainfall,
the chelidonian, the sunlight,
the friendly 'how are you today?'
the ongoing anxiety of heartache
for all that is frantic around us
and Her heart extends to mine
as a path to grace
My wish? May we bring mindfulness to the outdoors so that we can turn our attention to the gift of Spring and what is present in the moment.
