Every season serves a purpose

Living in Florida for a year really highlighted one of the things that I didn’t even realize I would miss and that was the changing of the seasons. It also made me think about the changing seasons of our lives and how every season serves a purpose even if we don’t see it at the time.

Don’t get me wrong, Florida is beautiful in many ways with its palm trees, turquoise waters, bright blue skies, perpetual sunshine, and the most colorful sunsets but with the exception of the dry season changing to rainy season and back and the blooming of the Jacaranda trees nothing else really changes that much. In the Midwest the changing of the seasons was always something I looked forward to with each being unique in its own way:

Spring~the sense of renewal, being able to open the windows to let the fresh breeze blow through to air out the house after being closed up for so long, the sight and smell of the flowers and trees blooming and grass growing which is all the more vibrant after a long, cold winter.

Summer~longer days, the feel of warm sunshine on your face, watching lightning bugs come out briefly every night at dusk, the smell of fresh mown grass and bonfires, the taste of fire roasted marshmallows, the excitement and beauty of a thunderstorm passing through.

Fall~the pretty colors of the changing leaves, the coolness in the air after a hot summer, watching the birds and squirrels gathering for the coming winter, fresh apple cider and pumpkin doughnuts from the local mill.

Winter ~the first snowfall leaving everything white and clean and making everything a virtual winter wonderland, the way snow mutes sound and makes everything quieter and softer, the taste of hearty comfort food, the sound and warmth of a crackling fire in the fireplace, the joy of the coming holiday season and family gatherings.

Although I love the changing of the seasons, overall change is hard for me. I am a creature of habit and stability and consistency are very important to me but sometimes change is necessary, even if it’s something we never thought we would want or never saw coming. Whether it’s a change of environment, scenery, pace, people around us, careers, habits, attitude, thoughts, or a multitude of other things, it can be scary with much of it out of our control at times. It can also have a minor or huge impact on us and the direction of our lives. And sometimes we have no other choice except to go with the flow and accept it, welcome it, learn from it, grow from it, or adapt to it. Sometimes there’s just not a darn thing you can do about it.

Each season, just as each season of your life, has its own blessings and good parts. Although some seasons may be colder and bleaker than others, there is beauty to be found in all of them if you look for it and remain open to the possibilities and opportunities presented. So appreciate where you are in your journey even if it’s not where you want to be. Accept the season you’re in even when it sucks. Keep walking forward through the hard things. But also cherish the good seasons when you’re in them and hold on tight to the memories of them when the rough seasons inevitably come again for they will remind you that good seasons are possible and will come again too.