When Change is Good

I may be the only person on the planet to think this way, but I love time change aka daylight savings.  I love when it starts getting dark earlier in the fall.  I love when it stays lighter in the spring.  I act like it's the first time I've ever experienced it every 6 months when it happens.  Please don't shoot me, but it fills me with joy.  

To me, that change has a purpose.  I know, I know, most of us aren't farmers and don't need to take advantage of the extra daylight for work, but I think our bodies still need it.  

Fall is a time to let go, slow down and settle in.  In the fall, I want to create comfy spaces inside.  

Spring is a time to gain momentum, to feel anticipation, to come out of hiding.  In the spring, I want to plant flowers and herbs and vegetables and be outside as much as possible.  

The older I get, the more firmly I believe we need spring and fall to recover from winter and summer.  Summer is bright and big and harsh.  Winter is deep and dark and dead.  Both require all of us--there is no halfway--leaving us exhausted and spent.

I used to think I didn't like change, but looking back, I realize I don't mind change...as long as it makes sense.  It's the change for change sake that drives me crazy. The "let's do something different because I'm bored" kind of change.  

I believe our bodies react to the changing seasons just like the grass and flowers and trees--even animals.  

Being on the farm for a full seasonal cycle, I see this clearly.  The dog gets a thicker coat in the winter and sheds it in the summer.  The chicken takes a break from laying eggs when the days are shorter.  The tree changes her colors and drops her leaves.  The grass stops growing.  It's just so tangible.  

For us humans, it's not always that black and white.  Our hair doesn't grow faster or thicker.  We don't lose limbs.  Most of our change occurs in what we do.  We shift from grilling to making stews and soups.  We spend more time inside rather than outside. 

I used to find myself wasting the season I was in, wishing I was in the midst of a different one.  In spring, I was ready to see the flowers in full bloom.  In summer, I was ready for a break in heat.  In fall, I was wishing for a white Christmas.  In winter, I craved the green of spring.  Can you relate?

I'm learning that the key to pretty much everything in life is being grateful--including in the season we are currently in.  Soaking in the sun--in small batches when we hate the heat.  Getting some pretty sunset pics in the fall.  Snuggling in and enjoying the quiet of winter.  Buying a new pair of rainboots in the spring.  Being all in where I am.  

But I'm not advocating to pretend.  It IS okay to mourn the passing of a season and to anticipate another. In fact, that's healthy.  But when we kick our feet about a necessary change, we miss out.  We don't get to be a part of shaping and pioneering the phase.

It's like the freak freeze we got last fall at the farm.  The trees were full of leaves--they were not ready to drop them yet.  When the freeze came, their leaves became too heavy and not only fell, they took whole branches and trees with them.  Those leaves, that should have been dropped earlier, will suffer the effects of that holding on for years to come.   

Today, I'm embracing the sun after a morning of hard rain and tornadoes.  I'm anticipating in a few weeks when the clocks fall back and the days are shorter.  

And I'm thankful for the change that's on its way...