Seasons for the soul ...?

written by Yvonne Morley-Chisholm

Reflecting on the seasons in nature we can understand something of how plants, animals, weather, daylight hours and even the temperatures in air and soil alike change in turn and at the right time to progress life on Earth as we know it.

I am sitting at my desk considering the effortless harmony that turns the cycle of seasonal change. Each part has its own place and character; each makes valuable contribution to the cycle of life. One leads seamlessly to the next and they cannot exist in health or balance without each other.

In one of our recent Thursday evening Distress or De-stress online wellness workshops I shared a few thoughts about how each season plays a crucial part in nature as well as in the “seasons” of our soul.

Everything in nature, trees, plants and natural habitats, produce leaves and flowers.

In the Spring, for example, sap rises, birds build nests and bees begin their tireless work of harvesting nectar and pollen for the hive.

Summer brings warmth to the land and, more often that not, to the human soul. Young animals grow and thrive in the warmer temperatures. The maturing displays of leafy canopies, flowers and the promise of fruitfulness to come inspiring a more joyful outlook.

Autumn is the time to harvest the food: the fruit and the crops; to create a pantry store ahead of the more barren time to come when the earth rests in winter. Ahead of this last season in the cycle comes a glorious heralding of the harvest when trees burst into brilliant displays of red, yellow and gold. This is the time to reap the rewards for the work invested in earlier months and to gather the harvest carefully within sacks, bags, boxes, jars and frozen storage.

Winter follows. It is often misunderstood. It can be shunned. Yet it makes a vital contribution: inviting sleep, hibernation and rest through those longer nights. Its biting frosts, harsh wind-chills, snowfalls and ice-laden branches all serve their purpose. Without these the pests and diseases would abound. Without winter there wouldn’t be cleansing ahead of the birth that will spring forwards after it.

"Nature gives to every time and season unique beauty; from morning to night, as from the cradle to the grave, it’s just a succession of changes so soft and comfortable that we hardly notice the progress." — Charles Dickens

As I consider the seasons in nature, I think about the metaphorical seasons and cycles in my life. Perhaps you do too.

Do you prefer certain seasons over and above others? The new life of spring perhaps or the relaxing warmth of Summer? Perhaps you take joy in gathering reward for your labours in Autumn, or perhaps you look forward to the “down time” to rest through the winter and be nourished from your store.

It seems prudent to reflect on our understanding of and relationship to each season. How might we re-appreciate the time and place for each season in our lives and in relationship to others? Might we reconsider each season afresh for the qualities each can offer us and those whom we love and care for?