Every spring I come back to Big Star Lake and its surrounding areas with a sense of anticipation. Not only for the warmer weather and the summer of fun to come, but to see spring renewal at its finest—or what I call the pop-up swamps. Low lying areas in the woods where the spring waters pool and become instant swamps teeming with new life and sound.
This year there were fewer pop up swamps for me to enjoy on my first walk through the woods. Maybe because we didn’t have a lot of snow to melt along with the first spring rains? Everything looked a little different to me, and yet a lot remained the same. The sounds around me for sure alerted me to the arrival of spring, as did the sun on my face and the wind in my hair, so welcome after winter’s chill.
I wrote this blog post last year and never posted it, so I thought I would share it now.
Pop up swamps teem with the sounds of spring.
Amidst the frogs, birds, and insects I hear the wind whisper: Renewal. Resolve. Rejoice.
I feel it, too in my bones. Renewal, I mean. I feel freer as I walk down the dusty path my cloak of troubles billowing out behind me.
It can happen overnight this change from the quiet and safe of winter, to the jubilant and wild spring life.
The shift from hibernation to growth and change.
Like people, swamps house crazy potential within.
In just moments they can leap forward and take off, nearly out of nothing, to become vibrant pools of life.
The quiet work that has gone on underneath during the quiet of winter, paves the way for quick spring expansion.
If you listen closely you might hear the question in your ear: Who Are You Now?
Like the pop up swamps that form from the spring’s heavy rains and winters quiet snowfall—you are ready to burst forth in all your alive glory.
Don’t hold yourself back. There is no time like the present to burst forth with the real you.
Conditions are right for forward motion and incoming joy.
The lowlands are the birthing spot of the swamps—just like the low times in our lives are opportunities to learn soul lessons we not only recover from, but flourish from after we get through the tough parts.
Without darkness there would not be knowledge of the light.
It helps if you stop resisting or constricting during times of darkness and instead allow yourself to be open to the feelings that come. Scary, yes. Uncomfortable, yes, but it is not necessary to rid yourself of them immediately. Accept the emotions, sit with them for just a little to uncover their true lessons. The heartaches of your low times will help you appreciate the upcoming moments of joy, and help you fully understand your journey later.
We build things from the ground up for a reason. Rock bottom is, if nothing else, SOLID ground to grow from.
When you feel stuck in life or in your progress:
1). Do not be afraid to ask for help, to take help or to offer help.
2.) Be open to other perspectives on your situation but remember no one outside of you can “fix” you.
3.) Expect to have some internal work to do to be able to let it go and get through to the forward motion part.
4.) Let go of all planned outcomes and surrender to organic change.
5.) Give yourself a break.
Maybe this spring will be the season of your renewal, your growth, and your expansion into the best version of you. I am eternally hopeful that it will be mine.