Spring is Here!

The Texas bluebonnets that give us so much joy are appearing on the roadsides.  I find myself breaking into a smile at the sight of these lovely, short-lived bursts of blue and white that let us know that Spring is here.  They won’t last long.  The stretches of blue, even now are sprinkled with spikes of red.  Soon the red will dominate—the Indian paintbrushes will have their day.  Then, as they fade, nature gives us the yellow and brown Indian firewheels to color Central Texas into the heat of summer.

As the wildflowers put on their show, each day is getting longer.  We have come through the darkness and the light is with us for a few more minutes each day.  With more cloudy days this winter and early spring than usual for Austin, you can feel everyone’s delight when the skies clear and the sun appears. Chances to be outside are eagerly sought out.  Listening for the voice of the Divine in the midst of this outburst of life seems to be a natural response.

Take the time to pay attention to the beauty that is all around you.  Stop to listen to the voice within that urges you to take a breath, to pause and care for yourself.  Be with what is in front of you and give yourself the space to enjoy that.  As you notice the warmth, light and color around you, mention your joy to someone else.  We can get so caught up in the stress of all that we “need” to do and complain about that to those around us.  I urge you to instead take a moment to share your enjoyment of the beauty of Spring in Central Texas.

Mary Oliver’s poetry expresses this so well.

“Instructions for living a life.
Pay attention.
Be astonished.
Tell about it.”

~ Mary Oliver

If you would like to dive deeply into an experience of listening for the voice of the Divine, join us for a Day Retreat in early May.  We’ll offer this on Tuesday, May 7, and Saturday, May 11, at Whitworth Farm Retreat in Bastrop.  See the Eremos website for more information.