Equinox
A couple years ago I found myself untethered in the worst way. I didn’t have anything to anchor my life to. The seasons came and went and I was just going through motions, and in a moment of pure instinct I rebelled against our modern ways, and pace. I decided I didn’t need another self help book or another influencer to diagnose me, I needed something tried and true. Something from a simpler, not nearly as loud, time. In a little book store I found a book on traditions for each season- it was a kids book, so it was perfect for me. It wasn’t a deep study on cultures and rituals, but it was a quick read on old celtic or farming traditions. It was exactly what I needed.
I have my own saying, “the pace you fold your laundry is the pace you should be living at.” With computers, we can communicate with someone across the world instantaneously. We can ask a question and get answers within seconds. Computers help us get things done with ease and speed, but I personally think it sets our expectations for ourselves too high. There’s no reason to rest, or slow down. The only thing that holds the process up is us. Well, this little book set a new pace for me.
It talked of communities gathering together to celebrate the first blooms of spring, or the return of the sun, or to celebrate the harvest and bounty of the year. It felt so simple. So, I started celebrating those things too. I’m not a farmer, sorry for the surprise, but I adapted these concepts to fit my little urban life and it showed me something I’ll never forget: despite the repetitions of the seasons and the days, there is no day or month or year that looks like the one before. When I started taking a pause to notice each season, I got to hold my year in my hands and treasure it. You start to notice how you’ve grown, what you’ve gotten to enjoy, who is with you in this season- the things that matter.
This week is the Spring Equinox, and I invite you to pause. What I learned in my little book is that from here until summer, the sun is coming back into town and it will wake up everything. Apparently, as the sun warms the earth back up, little blooms will come out and somewhere at sometime they would collect the first blooms of the year and honor them in celebration of the winter being done, and in anticipation of the abundance to come. Honestly, I never searched to see how accurate this book was, because I love the sentiment as is. It’s enough for me. This Equinox, I’m going to take stock of what has begun to bloom in my life this year so far. This marks the first quarter of the year completed. My song for today is Simple as This, by Jake Bugg. It’s a solid driving song if you’re headed out the door. But if you’re untethered in this season and looking for the things that matter, know that they aren’t hiding from you. It can be as simple as this.
