Don’t you feel that, with the coming of spring, you want to start doing new and fresh things? I do! Every spring.

There’s something about spring, almost as if our whole being knew and was affected by the newness of life all around. I feel energized, eager to start eating healthier – like salads and all kinds of fruits; I want to exercise, go on hikes and be outside in the sunshine, and on and on the list goes.

So, I have been thinking…Does this apply to my meditation practice as well? Do I feel energized and eager to start meditating longer and deeper? Well, for me, not necessarily.

Meditation is about creating new good habits; having an increased sense of peace in our lives, and letting go of what does not serve us anymore. Easier said than done, right? These things sound exactly like what most of us are trying to accomplish in life, but in the process, we realize that changing takes time and patience, that new choices require energy.

My meditation practice is similar to those plants that need tending, especially when they are young and fragile. It needs and depends of my eagerness, my interest in helping it thrive, and the love I pour into it. In time, it will bear flowers and fruit. They will come and go, and they will not always be visible to my sight, but as long as the plant itself is healthy, I trust that they will be there. I’ve seen it happen in other plants (or meditators) and I have experienced it in myself as well. I know that this type of plant is of a kind that continues to grow. And as time passes by, the plant becomes stronger; its roots deep and anchored in fertile soil, where the water of Spirit flows. And even if it isn’t so apparent from the outside, there is an underlying peace permeating its existence.

Happy Spring!