The Gifts of Spring

One thing I love about spring is how in-your-face it is, and how noticeable it is within our bodies.  Even in our world where we barely speak to passers-by, I notice that in the springtime, strangers are happy to talk about the weather and how excited they are for winter to move into spring.  There is a lightness in the steps of the folks at the metro, and everyone seems to stand a bit taller, to talk a bit louder.  I see people start going on walks and runs again.  This is what I mean by how noticeable the energy is within our bodies – this is the energetic of spring.  Isn’t it amazing?

            Each season’s energy is truly unique.  Every season offers us gifts and teachings, and as our self-awareness deepens, we can’t help but live in accordance with nature around us because we realize that we, as humans, are nature.  According to this ancient medicine, if we live according to the seasons we will not fall ill and we will live to be 100 years old. 

What are the gifts of the spring?  It’s not hard to guess.  Take a look around, go on a walk, breathe the fresh air, observe the trees and the flowers and the birds.  Notice when the sun rises and sets.  Feel the quality of the air before and after a rain.  Notice how you feel in your body amidst all of this new growth and change outside.

Wood is the element of spring.  Here are some of the gifts of spring and the wood element:

Possibility – After the long winter (a season of restoration) comes the great possibility of the spring.  Spring brings about birth and growth.  It is a time of action.  Notice the plants around you.  There is no stopping their growth, their enthusiasm, their drive towards the sun.  While it may seem impossible for a young crocus to break through the hard packed soil and grow even when snow remains on the ground, she nonetheless grows relentlessly, determined to move towards the sun.  It shows us nature’s gift of possibility.

Action – After stalking its prey quietly for hours, it is the energy of the springtime that calls the tiger to pounce.  This movement is decisive and without hesitation.  As humans, we also have this capacity within us – to observe and take in information, to weigh possible outcomes and the steps needed to get there, and then, when the time is right, to make a clean, clear decision, including mapping out all the steps that will be needed to get there. 

Imagination – It is the spirit of the springtime that brings about dreams, imagination, and creative energy.  During sleep, while our physical body remains on the earth, the spirit of the springtime within us, known in Chinese as the Hun, travels to other times and places, bringing back new ideas and possibilities.  We call the Hun’s transmission of all that it has experienced, dreams.

Expression of Anger – A healthy, balanced wood element brings about the healthy expression of anger.  After all, anger is the emotion that manifests into appropriate action.  Anger, when allowed to move smoothly, leads to peaceful action and decision-making.  Anger can lead to imbalance and disease when stifled and suppressed over a long period of time.  The wood element is responsible for the smooth flow of all emotions, and most particularly, of anger.  Of course, there are cultural connotations to the notion of anger.  One gift I received from this element is that anger is not bad.  It simply is.  It is up to me to allow the emotion of anger to move smoothly so that when the time is right, I will make the best decisions possible given my situation.  If you are interested in reading more about this, check out my post on the way the wood element manifested in Martin Luther King, Jr.

Flexibility – Bamboo is a traditional symbol of flexibility and strength. Bamboo, if only strong but not flexible, would topple during a windstorm.  It is the synergistic nature of flexibility and strength that allow the bamboo and the crocus to burst through the surface of the hard-packed soil and to navigate the wind, the snow, and the rain peacefully.  The gift of flexibility allows us to roll with the punches, to not fight the flow of water or wind, and to remain humble and open-minded.  Flexibility is what allows us to make decisions that bring about possibility rather than frustration.