Spring time, pandemic recovery and soul nurture move slow

Spring time, pandemic recovery and soul nurture move slow, much slower than most of us would hope. Does your soul crave color, calm and connection? And yet, at the same time, does your heart grow weary and impatient with the slow process?

Across the nation, many states are ever-so-slightly loosening restrictions and opening up our local businesses. My soul beats hopeful, optimistic — and a bit cautious.

We can’t rush this

Are you, like me, grateful for a new month and a bit of springtime hope? And yet, we can’t rush this.

We can’t rush this virus, experts say. We must step lightly and easily into this new season.

We can’t rush spring time either, especially here in Alaska.

And we certainly can’t rush soul space.

And so, like many, I will take it slow.

Spring in Alaska slow

Let’s let spring time, or summer if you’re in warmer climates, unfold at its own pace. Here, spring comes in slow waves across March, April and finally, May. It’s okay to grasp at each tiny sign, grateful for snow receding then disappearing, a brave plant poking out through snow and mulch, first buds on trees, then larger ones. Naming and noticing change helps us appreciate slow growth.

Change comes in the small details. In Alaska, Alaska Native elders and pioneer sourdoughs say you can safely plant outside when the birch leaves reach the size of squirrel ears. I watch the squirrel jump wildly from tree to tree in our back yard, never coming close enough for me to measure his dainty ears. Yet, by my estimates and knowledge of prior years, we have 2-3 weeks of frost risk.

And pandemic recovery slow

Smarter minds than mine are monitoring trends nationally and internationally. We don’t want to get over-optimistic and set our plants out too early in the spring, freezing them. Similarly, moving about too quickly or too many places in our communities brings COVID-19 exposure risk. Let’s allow the recovery to move at the pace that it takes.

Sometimes the pandemic seems so very far away from what we experience and yet it may strike close to home at any moment. And like that wild squirrel’s ears, we have a hard time measuring when it’s safe out there. We deal with an unseen and elusive virus. And we have information and mis-information overload. We have to continue to move slowly, making smart personal choices as our government re-opens society so we protect those most at risk.

And soul change slow

Oh my goodness, the soul can move slowly here in midlife, in a worldwide pandemic. Or so it seems when we live life, taking care of all of the things we do as women caregivers. A gal’s soul can feel unnoticed and unappreciated.

Can I just point out a few things for those days when your soul is tired? Like those tiny spring milestones, your soul grows and changes. You may find a glimmer of hope in little ways you give yourself the soul space you need.

• Perhaps you took a five-minute break today to just sit still.
• Or maybe you reached out to a friend for a chat.
• Did you face your feelings, refuse to numb with more work or an unnecessary glass of wine?
• Did you choose instead to go for a walk, smell a flower, feel the breeze?

You’re making progress my friend!

Good Things:

I’m excited to begin to share links to things I run across that will make you smile, inspire you, or simply make your life easier or better.

• Teacher Appreciation Week is coming! As schools wind down in the next few weeks, my friend Rachel Pearl VanEtten gives us three great reasons to recognize early childhood teachers!
• Thinking about cutting back on wine or alcohol? I signed up for a Sober Sis 21-Day Reset Challenge with the Sober Sis community. I’ve switched out my red wine for alcohol-free “mocktails” that taste great and are much healthier! This is a lifestyle community, with tools to help you drink less or not at all. Super supportive, not judgmental, no pressure to give it up forever.