BLUE SKY DAYS

Originally written on February 16, 2006

I have been so emotional lately. I feel like I need to be recharged and refreshed. Outside of being a girl, I am not sure what I am so emotional about these days. Through my melancholy, I thought about the changing seasons. We are currently in the thick of winter at least where I live. We got our first real snowfall last week. It was up to three inches. It seems to snow alot in February for some reason. We have actually had a relatively warm winter.

Introspectively, I started thinking about the changes that take place during this time of the year. The trees start to lose their leaves and then they are bare. They are vunerable and brittle eagerly awaiting a transformation. In the winter, the ground is blanketed in mist, dew, snow, and sometimes even sleet and ice. It takes a rough beating, but at the same time it is covered and protected as the earth falls into deep slumber much like bears hibrate in the winter. The earth is only awakened by the warmth of the sunshine as it shines brightly from the sky to the cold dark earth beneath it. The sun reminds the earth of what is ahead: luscious green grass, showers, color, flowers, and beauty.

What does winter and the changing seasons have to do with my emotional state? Winter is the earth's opportunity to rid itself of impuritites. It's a catharsis for the soul. It is a time of cleansing and healing, of letting go and moving on. Winter is a season of tears. Just like the trees shed their leaves in the winter the heart rids itself of it's emotional baggage and past hurts. I am not saying that winter is the only time you should cry. I am not saying that at all. It's just a metaphor and it's something that I have been thinking about hence this post.

Don't be ashamed to cry. Embrace it. Keeping our feelings trapped inside of us is very unhealthy. We have a right to feel the way that we feel; however, we all are responsible for our reactions. Don't be afraid to feel. Don't be afraid to breakdown. Cry your eyes out if you have to. It's even okay to cry for no reason. Crying doesn't mean that we are weak and pathetic. It actually means just the opposite that we are strong and purposeful.

Just like the earth that is blanketed in the winter, we have a shield of protection. Just like the earth excitedly expects beauty, our hearts hope. We know that better days are ahead if we work through our fears and insecurities. Our troubled minds and hearts will find peace. There is a light at the end of the tunnel. There is a rainbow after the storm. Remember the song, "The Rose"? "Just remember in the winter far beneath the bitter snow lies a seed that with the sun's love in the spring becomes a rose".

I don't know about you, but I want to get my crying fits out before the earth embraces beauty once again. And the season changes once again from winter to spring. Spring is a metaphor for a heart that is not afraid to feel to awaken and open up embracing the beauty all around it. We must drudge through the dark and the dreary before we can bask in the sun, look up and see the big puffy white clouds, and breathe fresh air. Make time to smell the roses and soak up the beauty around you this spring. I can't wait to feel like a schoolgirl in the springtime. I am grateful for all the seasons, but spring is the "la piece de la resistance". Spring is God's masterpiece. I know that the groundhog saw his shadow which means six more weeks of winter. Pretty soon though, it will be time to dry the tears from my eyes. Spring gives us all something to look forward to. Right now, what I am looking most forward to is basking in the happiness of the blue sky days.