Seasons

I love having seasons. It wasn't always such a big deal to me, though. I grew up in the Midwest. We have 4 seasons, but Winter always felt like it lasted forever. Oh, it started out great - the excitement of the holidays and the first snowfall! But long about February I was soooo over it!

A couple of years after we were married, my husband and I moved to Florida. It was awesome at first. They have seasons, too. They are just very subtle. I remember when we first got down there it was the end of August. The church we were attending had a Labor Day cook-out. While we were there people kept talking about how you could really feel "Fall in the air". We thought they were nuts. (We were the people who had to keep wiping sweat off our foreheads.) Before it was all said and done we felt "Fall in the air", too. We were rarely encumbered with little more than a sweatshirt to fight the chill in the air during the Winter months. And in the Spring when the citrus blossoms were in bloom! The smell was near Heaven on earth, I tell ya! Summer, however, was another story. We didn't like to venture out too much due to the severe heat and humidity so thick you felt like someone had thrown a thick, hot, wet blanket over you. We were there for nine years before moving back to the Midwest.

So here we are again. Four distinct seasons. But you know something is different this time around. The Spring air smells much crisper and sweeter. The summer sun on my face feels much gentler. And when it rains, I know that God is sending the provision I need to make my garden grow. Fall is one of my favorite seasons. The smell off changing (a.k.a. rotting) leaves is comforting. So is the smell that lingers in the air from people burning those leaves or limbs that have fallen to the ground. The crispness that once again fills the air is exhilarating. So we get to take advantage of both the fallen limbs and cool air by having friends over and sitting around a bonfire. Then there is Winter. You know it never really felt like Christmas to me while we were in Florida. Something about running the air conditioner while you're opening presents just throws a smidgen of water on the holiday fire. But now...well, the first Winter we were back the Christmas tree went up before Halloween, if that tells you anything!

I now realize that life is all about seasons. And not just the 4 that deal with changes in the weather. You see, those nine years we spent in Florida were also a season. So is this time in my life where I'm homeschooling my son. The list could go on and on, but you get the picture. Some of them last longer than others. Some we wish would last longer than others. But the thing that God has shown me since we've been back home is that seasons always change. It's part of the design. Each one has elements that make it spectacular. Each one also has elements that may not be so great. My job is to stop focusing on the bad, or wishing for the next season, or longing for the previous one. My goal is to live in the moment. Embrace it. If I'll just look around, I will see the magic of ordinary miracles. Every season is a gift to be treasured.