Spring is the perennial reminder of new beginnings; of the life force that exists inside everything, even when there appears to be no life there; of the great Cosmic power that pushes a blade of grass through a crack in a city sidewalk.

Human beings experience that life force in its highest intensity when they fall in love. At this time it’s experienced as a rush, a high, euphoria. And this is when we feel most alive. But this energy is flowing through us at all times. It’s the power behind every breath we take, the power behind our seeing and hearing: In short, it’s the power that breathes life into our bodies, the power behind our being able to get out of bed in the morning and also the power behind our creativity.

When we’re feeling great, we’re aligned with this power. When we’re feeling depleted, depressed or fatigued, we’re blocking it somehow. No matter what the disguise, if we dig deeply enough, we will find fear is at the bottom of any blockage. The fear could be about anything, big or little. It usually takes the form of “I can’t,” “I won’t be able to,” “what if…”, and has to do with the future. If at these times we can pull ourselves into the present, and become absorbed in an activity in the present, we become more alive. To paraphrase Scarlett O’Hara, let the future take care of itself. This isn’t giving us carte blanche to be irresponsible and not to prepare for the future, it means taking whatever actions are necessary to deal with the future in a responsible way, then letting go.

The seeds that are sown in the present will blossom whether we worry about them or not, so we must do all the necessary preparation and be sure to sow good seeds. If a blade of grass can push its way through a crack in the cement, there’s no limit to what we can do by aligning ourselves with the life force inside us.

The key to doing this is through stilling the mind. So sit quietly in a comfortable upright posture, with your eyes closed, and taking long even breaths, breath in life and breathe out anxiety. Feel yourself filling with life, as you gently breathe in a long even breath. Feel yourself lighter as you exhale. With each in-breath you can silently repeat “breathing in, I’m alive,” and with each out-breath, you can silently repeat “breathing out, I am lighter.” If we can bring ourselves to do this exercise for at least five minutes anytime we’re feeling depleted, or anxious, we will begin to feel livelier and more in touch with our inner source of life and energy. If we can commit to doing it for longer periods of time, we will begin to transform our responses to life and feel lighter and lighter.

As spring progresses, take the time to notice all the wonderful beginnings nature has set before us as a model for our own never-ending possibilities for new beginnings. As we notice each new blossoming, we can take a wonderful long deep breath and acknowledge the miracle of life in ourselves and in every tree and flower, dog, cat and human that we see.

Blessings from my heart to yours!
Joan