It’s gardening time again.

There are still remnants of last week’s blizzard.   I remember how quiet everything was.  I’ll admit, I did very few sessions.  Existing clients cancelled to stay safely indoors, and nobody new booked an appointment.   I don’t know if it’s the same for other therapists, but I have  noticed that I get few (if any) calls during a storm.  I wonder if people go into hibernation mode, and then emerge as the weather warms, reaching out for support when their system feels ready to receive it.

It’s a natural cycle, like the freeze and thaw of the snow.  Everything happens in its own time.  At no point are we separate from it.

Right now, I’m noticing how green the yard is.  The grass is always the greenest at this time of year.  The spring snow always revitalizes and renews what has been dormant.  As predicted, the phone is ringing again.

We need not fear our internal cycles that mirror the cycles of nature.  At times, we must honor our impulse to cocoon ourselves in our own comfortable world.  We must also honor the times in our lives when we feel more open.  This means trusting our intuition when we know, on some deep level, that openness is safe…that the sun is warming, and that the snow will soon be gone.

We know when it is time to get a new job, and when it’s time to stay with our old one.  We know when it’s time to seek out a new partner, and when it’s time to focus more on ourselves.  All of our wisdom is within, and observation of the natural world can teach us so much about ourselves. We can also look to myths and archetypes to understand the perennial truth of human resiliency.   Some of us celebrate Easter, and some of us do not.  Regardless of our spiritual orientation, there is something deeply awe-inspiring about these stories of resurrection, which we have told ourselves over and over again throughout the ages.

I hope you are taking time, today, to be kind to yourself, knowing that you have weathered many storms.  You are fully deserving of the new life you create for yourself.

If you have time, this week, you may wish to take a walk and observe how nature is transforming.  In my garden today, I noticed many living worms underneath the dead leaves, preparing the soil for new growth.  I interfered with them as little as possible.  In the same way, we need not interfere with our own natural inclinations.  Healing happens on its own time. Sometimes, we need only slow down and observe our natural patterns to understand that there is actually nothing wrong with any of us.

Whether you’ve called a therapist or not, you are already healing. Your impulse to reach out is a natural process of growth, like a plant slowly rising above the snow.

Hold yourself in gentle awareness, and know that you are doing fine.