Signs of Spring
Posted on: March 10, 2016
- In: Everyday Life | Faith
- Comments Off on Signs of Spring
Just a couple of months until spring sports start!
Yesterday’s weather surprised me: my car’s thermometer gave the temperature as a mild 10°C and a light rain was falling as I headed home from running some errands. Today, when I was eating breakfast, I noticed fog and brownish grass poking through the snow in the park behind my house.
With the heavy snow we had not so long ago, my front and back yards are still covered, but the streets are pretty bare and we’re wearing shoes and lighter coats instead of heavy winter boots and outerwear.
Have I heard or seen robins yet? No, but milder weather is on the horizon and, as much as I enjoy winter, I’m not all that sorry to see it packing its bags and waving goodbye.
We’re quick to spot the signs of spring in nature—longer days, more sun, warmer temperatures, the return of songbirds—but how quick are we to notice them in our own lives?
When we’re going through a rough patch, it might seem as though winter will always be with us. Our worry or fear or problems may feel like a January chill settling in our hearts that the sun won’t thaw.
But that’s when we most need to ask God to show us the signs of new life in our lives: a larger and stronger support network than we had before, growth in our faith, the desire and the will to start living again and expanding our comfort zone by trying new things.
I’ve had some wintry days in my heart in the past few months, but I feel the onset of spring. I’ve started taking better care of my health and seeing positive results. Spending more time having fun with my family. Putting more effort into finding a full-time job. Reaching out to people and making stronger connections as well as new ones. Talking to God often and letting him speak to me in prayer, through his word in the Bible, and through the homilies and advice of my parish priest.
Winter may be long, but spring always comes. If we struggle to believe the end of winter is in sight, I pray that we would ask God to open our hearts to see and feel the change of season.
What a wondrous time is spring
When all the trees are budding
The birds begin to sing
The flowers start their blooming
That’s how it is with God’s love
Once you’ve experienced it
~ “Pass It On” by Kurt Kaiser
A Catholic Convert in Ottawa 