In the past, I barely noticed spring. Sure, I was aware that flowers were blooming and days were getting longer, but I didn’t pay much attention to it.
But for the past few years, spring has become much more vivid. I’ve come to find great joy in springtime. And I recently realized that my joy arises from noticing all the details of the season.
I’ve likely gotten better at noticing the details because I’ve been using meditation to develop greater mindfulness, and awareness is one of the key features of mindfulness. It probably also doesn’t hurt that I resolved my depression by getting sober five years ago, so I’m now more open to all the substance-free pleasures the world has to offer.
But you don’t have to do any of that to become more attuned to the joyful details of spring. You just have to go out and deliberately look for them. Paying attention to the details of spring is a way to practice everyday mindfulness. The more you do it, the more you’ll notice.
Now, it’s easy to get overwhelmed by all the new growth and just see a mass of green.
And all that green is pretty. But if you take the time to look more closely, there are many wondrous details to enjoy.
Here’s one of my favorite sights of spring.
At first, it appears to be a bush with two kinds of flowers! But the bright red is actually new growth: leaves not yet dominated by green chlorophyll. The bushels of while bells are the flowers.
Some new growth is far more subtle. Next time you pass a cedar tree, look closely at the foliage. The dark green should fade gently to lighter green just at the tips.
The new growth on this pine tree starts as tight brown bundles that will eventually poof out into bunches of needles.
In the underbrush, you’ll find that the baby trees already have their full leaves.
Meanwhile, the big trees towering overhead are just starting.
I guess the little guys have to capture as much sunlight as they can before the canopy of the older trees covers them in shade.
Also in the underbrush, there is a sea of vine blackberries all shooting straight up.
And sometimes flowers are hiding in the underbrush.
Here we have a squirrel giving us his better half.
I don’t know what sort of flowers these are, but I like them.
And don’t just look at flowers from afar. Get in really close and examine their character in detail.
Even this Oregon Grape is adorned with puffs of yellow flower.
Sometimes, to see something great, you have to look up.
Other times, you have to look straight down.
Wherever you look, look closely and carefully. If you do, you’ll find details to be savored.
Even as we struggle against a pandemic, there is much to be grateful for. Even as our lives have been put on hold, spring has sprung, and in its details, there is joy to be found.