Reflection: Seasonal Blues

So many of us experience depression ‘tis the season to be a little extra blue. I took a walk, all bundled up, the weather is colder, the breeze is a little stronger, the sky may be a bit darker.. The same may go for your mood. I can understand how one may feel gloomy in this weather, I also found so much beauty from the experience. The trees show us that change can be beautiful, and that it’s okay to let things go. The sunrises and sunsets are absolutely stunning. Observing nature assured me that being defeated by seasonal depression is 100% optional! “From the beginning the key to renewal has been the casting off of old skin”.

What does this mean? Not that we can live forever, but that’s the way to stay closest to the pulse of life, the way to stay in the presence of that divine reality which informs everything is to be willing to change. But to change what? To change whatever has ceased to function within us, to shed whatever we are carrying that is no longer alive. Without feeling, there was no chance of wholeness, and wholeness remains our best chance to survive the pain of breaking.

Shedding opens us to self transformation. Those of us who refuse such renewal will, sooner or later, be forced to undergo transformation anyway as a result of being broken or eroded by the world.

Yes, living is not easy, and living openly is both wondrous and dangerous. The fact is that shedding, no matter how useful, always has a pain of its own. Unfortunately, there is no escaping this underside of growth.

* Meditation: Take a few deep breaths, close your eyes.. and ask yourself, what are you being called to shed, to put to rest, in order to gain greater access to the hidden wholeness of life. What voices are asking you to keep your old skin and not change? What is the cost to you for not renewing your connection with all that is eternal?

#eveningmeditation #shed#renew #seasonaldepression #gowiththeflow #enjoythetimetotransform #newseasonnewyou #bookofawakening

📷 photo credit: Shanee Wimberly