"The Wisdom of Joy From Jerry" #2 - Spring

This is my favorite time of year, springtime. The weather is perfect and it's easy to find Joy because it's all around you. I mean look at springtime; trees getting their leaves and flowering, flowers blooming, dead shoots coming back to life. Everything about this time of year is perfect to me, it feels like a fresh new start; like a breath of fresh air into everything around you. Even putting dozens and dozens of bags of mulch down in the backyard around the bases of the trees isn't a chore because you're outside and interacting with the outdoors. It's even better doing it with someone you love, it makes it even more enjoyable. My wife and I are always working together in the yard and inside on projects and planting things. New starts and new beginnings all the time, life is always changing and there is never a better chance than springtime to witness that.
Another thing I love about Spring is getting ready for camping season. Camping is one of the joys of my life. For as long as I can remember I have loved spending time outdoors and one of the best ways to do that is to go camping. Growing up I would go camping with friends, of course in the Army and always with my family throughout the years. When my kids were growing up we would take an annual vacation every year and drive across the country traveling and exploring. We wanted to expose them to more than just the little bubble around their lives. Spring just tends to bring out that sense of wonderment and adventure. The last time I was at the Grand Canyon was with my son on our way to Los Angeles when we were moving his stuff out there. While we didn't get to camp on that particular trip we spent two days there enjoying the Grand Canyon in Spring. Over a decade earlier, as a family, we had taken three days to hike to the bottom of the canyon and back up again. To spend another Spring moment there with my son was a treasure. There is nothing more majestic than the true beauty and awe of nature. 
Spring is the most joyful time of the year for anyone and everyone, it symbolizes fresh starts and new beginnings. Some say Fall, some Winter and some Summer, but to me it will always be Spring. The temperature may fluctuate a little, but the air is warm, fresh and crisp and you can smell growth everywhere in the air. The magic of nature, the magic of Spring. 

Springtime, Anytime - New Blossoms & New Beginnings

Today is a special day, a day in which the air is filled with the buzz of new beginnings and fresh starts. Today is the first day of Spring, a magical day where almost anything is possible. The first day of Spring marks the March Equinox, the Vernal Equinox for the Northern Hemisphere of Earth. We have an Equinox twice a year, each a time when the sun crosses from one hemisphere to another. Since our planet is tilted the northern and southern parts switch off which gets the most sunlight throughout the year. Hence, seasons. This Equinox marks the beginning of the Sun entering our hemisphere - giving us the warmth of Spring and Summer. In Fall it will cross once more and bring its warmth to the southern parts of our planet and we will have Winter. Another extraordinary thing about the Equinox is the fact that night and day are the same length, in Latin Equinox means equal night. It is a time of balance on Earth, when time seems to align momentarily as is to make sure everything is still in check. Today the sun rises due East and sets due West. It is the Universe aligning once again in its ever repeating cycle of limitless patterns. Draw strength and peace from days like today. Draw on the energy that is buzzing all around and weaving in and out of all of us. Take a moment and breathe, reflect. As Spring starts take a look at yourself, your life, how happy you are, what you want - look at everything. Let it all just wash over your mind so you can soak it in. This is a time for fresh starts and new beginnings. What do you want to change? Do you feel like there's something you just can't change but wish you could? Try. Go for it. Find support, make a plan, set a goal and don't give up. The first day of Spring is like hitting the rest button, life is jump starting outside as the cycle continues and life goes on as it always will. Use that momentum and energy to push and fuel yourself. On top of that, remember that today is also just another day. It doesn't have to be a big moment or special occasion to sit down and look at your life. To check and make sure you really are happy and joyful in life, you can do that any time anywhere. 

The first day of Spring is just special because as we drag ourselves out of the cold isolation of Winter we begin to stretch and spread our wings in the clear blue Spring skies. Take a moment today to look outside, step outside even and take a walk. Breathe in some fresh air, savor the peace and relaxation. Let the newfound energy and buzz from nature flow around you. Embrace the world around you today. Use this as an opportunity to take stock of where you are right now and where you would like to go over these coming Spring and Summer months. Spread your wings and fly today, the sky is the limit. 

Lizards In The Garden

As spring begins the world has begun to come alive all around me. I love it, I love the smell and I love the feeling in the air. That crispness I sense as I breathe in is so refreshing and invigorating. This is why I am always going outside. It's why I'm always pushing myself to get up and get out. When I get really depressed all I want to do is stay in. Whether it's lying in bed, sitting at the desk or sitting on the edge of the bed I don't care. I just don't want to get out and interact with people. And I definitely don't want to talk on the phone. I can get stuck like this, stuck in this terrible self-perpetuating cycle of misery and despair. We all can, it's an easy trap to fall in to. The best way I found to get out of it is to get up and just go outside. I do it by myself if I need to, but I still go outside and breathe in the fresh air. It brings me back to life. When it's time to come back inside I always feel at least a little more optimistic about life. It somehow helps me realign my perspective and puts a little more fuel in my tank. I don't know what it is but it works every time. It helps me calm down enough to take a deep breathe and put all my problems in relative perspective. I push myself to realize that some things just aren't worth t, like whether or not what I did at work made someone mad or not. If it did then oh well it's already happened and I can't change that. If not then I have nothing to worry about anyway. It's simple, some things aren't worth wasting time worrying over. The past is the past and all we can do is adapt and move forward as best we can. Sometimes we need something to force us to slow down, to take that breath. Use nature, it's all around you and already at your fingertips. It costs nothing and returns everything. It can be simple like walking to the store just down the street instead of driving to it or taking a fifteen minute walk through the park with your headphones on. Do something you want, it is supposed to be fun too. 

One of the things I love is seeing the flowers budding and the green growth stemming from all the tree branches around me. A raw example of life and the power of nature, it's beauty on display for all to see. Roses are my favorite, red roses particularly. But I do love all roses, and I love that I get to see them everyday walking in my neighborhood. The old saying about stopping to smell the roses always comes to mind, but then again it is true. I love to just stop and close my eyes and smell a beautiful rose. It's five seconds of pure bliss. Everything melts away and afterwards that rose stays on my glasses to keep me looking at things just a little bit brighter. The next time you are out take a moment and smell a rose, or any beautiful flower you happen to come across. Savor the moment and take in the healing energy Mother Nature is giving you. 

Now that the warm weather is here and the sun is out to warm the stones and grass lizards are almost everywhere. I love it, I used to have a pet lizard. He didn't last too long but I loved him for every second. At least I think it was a him. I wouldn't know. I've always loved lizards, just not snakes. There are lizards out sunbathing on the walkways at work and on the stones lining our daily hiking trail. There are so many, I love just watching them. They are so adaptable, I have always been amazed that they can grow back a tail that gets severed. Amazing. They can climb almost anything too, any surface or terrain. When I see a lizard I tell myself to be a little more lizard like. Take time to bask in the healing sunlight, pause and breathe in this beautiful world around you and learn to adapt to trying and tolling situations with dignity. You know you're able to. We all have it inside of us, it's how we're made and born. Lastly, don't be afraid to go anywhere, even when you're scared out of your mind. Don't be afraid to tackle any surface or brave any terrain. Look at the lizard, another example of the universe showing us that we really can make it. Slow down enough to get the message and see just how much it will change your life. Take a second and go look through the window into the garden. It's beautiful isn't it? Wouldn't you feel better outside? Just five minutes of that fresh air is worth a days problems if you let it empower you. Harness the joy around you and take flight, what is there to wait for? Nothing more rewarding. 

Springtime, Making Room For Fresh Growth

It's that time of year again, spring is here. It seems as if spring ended only a few weeks ago. Time flies as life goes on, I always heard but never believed that. Until I grew up. But it is now time to brush off the cobwebs, stand up, stretch your muscles and get back to life. As time changes it pushes us into longer days and warmer nights. Buds start to appear on the trees and slowly grow until flowering open a few weeks later. The street is lined with tall pines and eucalyptus trees and so many more types that I can't even name that over the last few weeks I've gotten to watch the trees come back to life and flower right before my very eyes. The sea of green is littered with flowers of every color, all gently waving in the wind. It's always so amazing to watch what seems like a dead tree slowly bring itself back to life and fill out with color.

It's the perfect time to evaluate yourself and where you're at and what you're doing. It must be something in the air, in the warm afternoon breeze that feels so good. The fresh smell lingering in the air is so refreshing. Everyone does spring cleaning of their closets and clothing, but what about our lives? Isn't that more important anyway? All of us have our dark corners filled with secrets, pain and memories. Everyone carries anxiety, doubt and fear with them, slowly letting it build up and shade your view of the world around you today. There is no need to carry all of that excess baggage with you through life. Those things that have hurt you in the past can now only hurt you if you give them permission. Clean out your closets and make room for something else. The more you allow to build up the more you weigh yourself down with unnecessary stress and worry. Don't let yourself be weighed down with this burden. You don't have to open up to someone else, but you have to at least be honest with yourself. We all owe that to ourselves.
I love springtime because everywhere you look it's like the whole world is fresh and clean. Like a breath of fresh air after the stale winter air you learn to grow accustomed to. Of course we aren't the only ones who get going when the warm weather moves in. The animal world starts to buzz and swarm, coming to life all around us. Whether it's the squirrels playing around the trees or the return of the opossum who used to visit every night we can find comfort in the living and thriving world around us. Nature is harsh and cruel and if the tiny clovers in the field next to the dam and the sprouting palm trees in the cracks of the sidewalk can thrive through such dangerous obstacles then we should be able to weather anything. After all, most of us have food to eat and somewhere to sleep, and if you're reading this then some electronic device of some kind. We are so lucky. There are so many people in the world who have no idea what a cell phone is or how one works. Remembering that, we can be grateful for the things we enjoy each and every day. It reminds me of the beetle I saw the other day when we were hiking. The sun was bright and warm and the ground held the heat well. In the path the beetle was digging away trying to either find something or make himself a nest. For a minute or two I just stood there and watched it, going at it like no one else was there. He was so determined, so driven. There was one task he had to do and he was doing just that. I almost envied him, the dedication to keep going through the heat and being tired. He was in danger though, as everything is in nature; except that his world was full of much more death and ways to accomplish such. He was working so hard like that because he knows that at any moment a bird can land right next to him, a dog run by and catch a glance, a rock might crumble and fall as it's crossing the dam or someone walking by could accidentally step on it without even knowing it were there. How depressing. But then again isn't the same true for us? There are an infinite number of things out there that can harm and kill us, we are pretty much always vulnerable to something. That's life. That's the world we live in. But to see it on such a scale made me pause. Looking down I saw how small that little beetle was; I saw how small his problem was compared to the expanse of trees and bushes in every direction. To him it looked so urgent, so consuming. In reality the world lived on a much grander scale. Looking down I felt like that little bug was all these things I've been stressing about and worrying over. I haven't been able to see the forest through the trees as it were. Letting go of all these little things that I have no control over and aren't worth my time anyway is the one thing that will free me enough to see the bigger picture and realize I am a lot more joyful than I first thought. After stopping my partner from stepping on it I headed out with him down the path, leaving my little friend to his worries and letting him slip from my mind. If only I could do that with everything else on my mind. That's the point though, to try and do just that. 

The other day my partner decided to take little Miss Stormborn on a walk just as I was leaving for work. I decided to take a few minutes and go with them. What better way to start off the day? Turning one of the corners he stopped and bent over to pick something up off the sidewalk. He showed me four of the smallest little flowers that had all fallen from the tree overhead. They were so small and delicate but also beautiful and wonderous. What's more, there were hundreds of them all over the sidewalk. As I was sitting in my truck getting ready to head out he leaned in the open window and placed the four of them on the dashboard for my drive. It made me grin so big. Driving to work, every time I looked down, I couldn't help but smile again. It served as a good reminder to me to not take things too seriously and to stop and take the time to not just smell but see the flowers. Something much easier said than done. Something I still need to be constantly reminded of. It worked, he made me smile and helped me start my day with hope and love and laughter instead of anxiety, dread or fear. The world is growing around us and we can build off of its growth ourselves if we take the time to just look. Growing means changing and changing means learning new ways to look at the world. Look at the world you have built around you. Do you like what you see? Are you thriving in your environment? Are you taking advantage of every opportunity available to you? Or do we all just kick it like a bug in a dirt pile and get so lost in the stress we create for ouselves that we lose sight of what's really real and beautiful, love and hope and courage and strength? Don't give up, keep going and pursue the path of joy. Well it's really more just the path in life that you choose lined with joy instead of hate. More than control over your life, you have control over yourself. So do something. Spring is here and the sun is shining. Time to grow.