Lent: springtime for the soul

A friend posted photos of a crocus field and a nest with blue eggs on her Facebook page.  I checked out  the weather report and see that we can expect milder weather for the next 14 days.  Daylight savings time started today for those to the west of us… and I am ready to stop painting snow for awhile.  All indications that  winter may be giving way to spring.

Another indication of course is the season of Lent.  From the old English word lenten, meaning "spring" we find ourselves in a season before Easter which is also an "invitation to a springtime for the soul.  Forty days to cleanse the system and open the eyes to what remains when all comfort is gone.  Forty days to remember what it is like to live by the grace of God alone and not by what we can supply for ourselves."  [Barbara Brown Taylor]  Taylor goes on to write, "I think of it as an Outward Bound for the soul. No one has to sign up for it, but if you do then you give up the illusion that you are in control of your life."

I look forward to this season where I willingly pay more attention to my soul, to my thoughts, my actions, to what I value most, to why I do what I do, etc.  A time to search out moments of stillness - to sit by the still partially frozen river soaking up the sunshine, or take my coffee to the gazebo where I can listen to the birds and watch the icicles drip. A time to rest a bit and refuse to always be doing! A time to prepare myself to more attentively listen to and watch for the sounds and signs of spring.

And so I say, optimistically, "Goodbye Winter"and after a nights sleep I choose to awaken not with spring's renewed vigour and energy, but with a renewed sense of soul attentiveness to what unfolds in the days ahead.

Last of the "winter" paintings:

'Snowfall' - actually, I'm not sure this is quite finished!