Credit: Ted via Flickr
A few days ago, I saw daffodils poking through the flower bed that lines our driveway. As I approached them, they screamed with excitement, “Spring is coming. Spring is coming!”
Not so fast.
Seasons don’t listen to weather forecasters and they don’t follow a calendar. They don’t circle an approaching appointment for an anniversary, birthday, or retirement day.
Seasons flow from one to the other. They always follow a schedule, but only when they are “good and ready.”
And so it is with of our lives. We anticipate the arrival of greater things to come that sometimes never happen. However, it is our choice to either wallow in the disappointment of delay, or acknowledge and accept the natural order of the universe.
In the past, I admit that I fought against the flow of life and complained about the weather. I waited anxiously for something good to happen. “Surely, it has to stop raining. Things have to get better.”
Something happened alright!
Last year, on this date, I suffered a debilitating stroke during a surgery to install a stent that opened a 98% blocked artery in my heart – a category 5 hurricane of life.
Spring was not full of daffodils and tulips for Cathy and me. Summer was better, but we could not see the glorious colors of autumn. And winter, well it was just brutally cold and snowy.
We are not alone. Our family and friends have endured and continue to struggle for survival in the storm-filled weather of New England and in their lives.
Despite the cruelty of this last year’s seasons, Cathy and I are not complaining, and we are not blaming Mother Nature. She flows, slowly from season to season. Life flows from event-to-event, hardship-to-hardship, day-to-day, and celebration-to-celebration.
Today, Cathy and I will celebrate the anniversary of the worst day of my life. Today, we will celebrate the worst FOUR SEASONS of our lives together despite a deep-rooted pain and haunting memories that we may never forget.
Cathy and I are not who we used to be. We will never be the same, but not because of poor weather or circumstances. We will no longer wait for good weather or something good to happen. We have and will continue to create positive changes in our lives.
Although our tragedy left us weak and fragile, we are nourishing ourselves to live more joyfully, as the leaves of a tornado-battered tree absorb energy and life from the sun.
Seasons end. Seasons begin.
“Hello, little daffodils. It’s nice to see you again. I’m sorry I couldn’t enjoy you last year. Let’s have some fun this year, shall we?”
Be Kind. Be Thankful. Be Significant.
Peter
(Note to locals: trees in the above photo are across the street from Buttonwoods.)
