Today marks the start of spring. Traditional rites and festivals of spring revolved around its importance in growing food. Plants start to grow and animals come out of hibernation and begin reproducing. People come out of hibernation too!
Here are some ways to celebrate:
• Clean: Now is a great time to do some cleaning and donating. Go through your closets and drawers and get rid of anything that you don’t need and give it to an organization or someone who will get more use out of it. It feels great to have less STUFF cluttering your space! It’s good for the mind and soul.
• Celebrate Food: Like in the traditional spring festivals, you can celebrate the start of the agricultural season by taking more trips to the farmer’s market to enjoy the delicious spring foods. Some exciting foods coming into season are artichokes, asparagus, and strawberries. To see what’s in season in your area, put in your zip code at eatwellguide.org.
• Plant: You can also celebrate by starting your own garden (or reviving last year’s garden). This When To Plant app tells you the best planting times based on your zip code. You can also find that information on TheVegetableGarden.info.
• Reflect: Lastly, any change of seasons is a great reminder to refocus our goals and reflect on what we really need so we can be more attune with ourselves. Here are a few questions to reflect on as you celebrate the new season:
What do I need? Sleep? Rest, love, friends?
What is my heart craving?
What are my goals in the different areas of my life: relationships, family, career, health, money, home, community, activism, etc.?
What are the baby steps I can start to take to get me there?
Make it a point to schedule your life to only include the things that you need the most so there’s no room for anything else but the life you want. If you need a little help getting focused, I recommend this book Organizing from the Inside Out by Julie Morgenstern. I talk more about the book here.
How will you celebrate Spring?
Photo source: D Sharon Pruitt
