Voices
Spring Forward
By Donna Henes
Spring is Mother Nature’s wake-up call. She sounds her bugle for reveille, and the sun comes running back to us, light and warmth on its heels. “Rise and shine,” she orders. And it does.
The Earth awakens in the solar radiance. The living energy, which has stayed hidden underground during the long deep sleep of the dark season, now shifts and starts to stir.
The dirt thaws. The sweet sap rises. Poking and peeking, it seeks the surface, the space, the air, the light. Stretching skyward, life breaks new ground.
Bulbs burst forth from the Earth, sending up tender shoots. Buds appear. Seeds sprout. The first early flowers explode open, exposing their delicate flesh to the still nippy air.
Mother Earth gives a whistle, and the birds and insects return from their lazy days in balmier climes. Her hibernating creatures turn over, give a good stretch. and then emerge groggy and bleary eyed from their long winter’s nap.
And so do we. After months of lethargy and holiday indulgences, we feel anxious to be active again. We are suddenly more alert, attentive, antsy, enthusiastic. We feel a surge of exuberance and verve. Our sap is rising too.
All of a sudden the whole world is in the throes of a contagious spring fever, a dizzy, delirious dance of motion, emotion, animated activity. The season is shot through with boundless spirit, vibrant enthusiasm, ardor, and potential creativity.
Spring forward! Step lively!
Shake a leg! Get a move on!
March!
It is definitely time to shake things up. Our houses are stuffy. We are chubby. Our muscles are mushy and our joints are rusty. Our brains are filled with sawdust. We are gliding in low gear.
Shake it up baby!
Throw open the windows and let in some fresh air. Do a good old-fashioned spring cleaning to rid the house of accumulated dust and stale, musty smells.
Exchange the flannel sheets for cotton ones. Wash the blankets and woolens and pack them away until the next cold day come fall.
Dust and polish the leaves of your indoor plants. Put a couple of pots of hardy flowers on the windowsill or the terrace. Buy fresh flowers.
Move your things around — your furniture, your art, your knickknacks and treasures, to give you a new perspective for a new season. Declutter your space. A mess can feel cozy in the winter, but in spring it just feels like a mess.
Leave your winter den and go outside. Breathe deep!
Walk briskly -- a welcome pleasure without fear of ice and the odd tumble. Leave off the heaviest layers of mufflers and mittens and let the vigor of walking warm you up.
Spend more time outside. Go to a park or to the country. Visit an arboretum or a botanical garden. Watch the natural world come alive.
Or stroll through the city streets and appreciate the ascendant energy as folks emerge from their lairs.
Liven up your environment and your wardrobe with brighter cheerful colors. Lighten up your mood, as well, Spring can be delightfully frothy, giddy, giggly. Run out to meet it. Join in its spirit. Enjoy it!
Donna Henes has been called “the unofficial commissioner of public spirit of New York City” by The New Yorker. Author of The Queen of My Self: Stepping into Sovereignty in Midlife and three other books, she is the director of Mama Donna’s Tea Garden and Healing Haven in Brooklyn. You can visit her at
www.DonnaHenes.net.
