I'm training myself to be mindfully optimistic about spring instead
of wishing away the present; but it's not easy.
Embracing three days of cold rain and grey fog in late March challenges
my best intentions. So I cheat a bit. Without threatening mother earth to
quicken the pace of her slowly timed season change, I force forsythia. Forsythia
is a wonderful, hardy shrub that explodes into tons of bright yellow flowers in
early spring. When the buds finally burst nature proclaims that winter has
passed, but that's in April.
The cheating begins in the dark of March. Before the blooms
have begun to open, I sneak into the garden to cut stems and carry them into my
house. Putting the sprigs into vases of warm water, I can practically hear the
sticks sigh with relief from the harsh cold. Then I wait and watch. I consider
it a meditation to spend mornings with my coffee willing the buds to unfold. Eventually
bright yellow petals greet me in my kitchen and my impersonation of Mother
Nature is complete. And that makes me
smile; which is another way to endure March.
My current favorite guided meditation includes the
instruction to create the "suggestion of a smile" at the eyes, and
the mouth, and inside the mouth. Just hearing the teacher giving this direction
makes me smile, so I comply. And I've started applying this forced smile concept
to my March life. In the early morning, when I go out to feed my horse, if the
rain runs down my back I practice smiling with the inside of my mouth. Or if a passing car splashes me with cold
slush as I approach my mail box, I attempt smiling at the corner of my eyes. I've
read that dopamine, endorphins and serotonin are all released when a person
smiles. So maybe even pretending to smile makes a person happier. And if it
doesn't I'm still cheating winter by forcing the bright, sunny forsythia in my kitchen.
It'll do.
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