Spring Feels Different

Today I am grateful for the simple but delicious breakfast my husband Darcy made for us, and for the play of early morning sun on the table top on which I am composing this post. 

Spring officially arrived early yesterday in my part of the world, also known as the Northern Hemisphere. I love spring. I love the changing seasons, always ready for the next one as I grow weary of some aspects of the current one. 

Last spring it seemed the world was off kilter. It was such a strange and uncertain time. Yet, I remember thinking many times how helpful it was that as the pandemic picked up speed and shelter in place orders spread and lengthened, our spring was spreading and lengthening here too. There was the hope of new life and green, even as our old normal went right over the cliff. 

This spring feels different. We have made it through a year of COVID-19 and all the changes and restrictions that has meant. We have survived personal and global challenges. We aren't home free though, and we likely will never feel the same even when we can say things are back to "normal." 

When Darcy and I were out walking yesterday afternoon, I paused to take this picture:

It captures the precarious place we still find ourselves in, as well as our communities and our world. There is thin ice that remains treacherous. There is the hope of calm waters ahead. Our choices and chance will both play a role in whether or not we fall in and risk drowning or reach a stretch of smooth sailing. 

Unlike these Canadian geese, we can't just pick up and fly ourselves to safety. Our burdens are a little heavier. We can, however, continue to make choices that support the common good as well as our own ends. We've made it this far. Best to maintain caution rather than throw it to the winds of March and April.