Gratitude Friday 3/22/24 – Rebirth of Life

Spring is a time of rebirth that we observe in a number of ways. We see the return of life around us as winter shifts into spring, that we can first see as trees form small buds and flowers like crocuses, hyacinths, and snowdrops shoot out from the thawing ground. Various world cultures and religions also observe holidays related to rebirth and spring, including the Hindu festival of Holi, Nowruz, with origins in Zoroastrianism, the observance of Ramadan with the breaking of the fast in Eid al-Fitr and Easter in Christian traditions. For me, rebirth is about recovery and emerging out of what Joseph Campbell called the dark night of the soul. The notion of rejuvenation and emerging anew from darkness and the celebration of a overcoming darkness, both literally or as emerging from a challenging time. This is a theme that deeply resonates with me in my life. This week, I thought I would share a few quotes on rebirth and rejuvenation.

“If you can see your path laid out in front of you step by step, you know it's not your path. Your own path you make with every step you take. That's why it's your path.” ― Joseph Campbell

"What if instead of heroically bursting from the fire, a weakened and traumatized bird rises awkwardly, just barely, careening through a wall of sky on fire, entirely uncertain of what fate awaits when it finally clears the smoke? Why can't this mess be a triumph? Why can't basic survival be a kind of glory? Why do we envision a pristine and painless resurrection - when the world shows us, time and time again, how messy these processes really are?" - Emily Rapp Black

“If we never experience the chill of a dark winter, it is very unlikely that we will ever cherish the warmth of a bright summer’s day. Nothing stimulates our appetite for the simple joys of life more than the starvation caused by sadness or desperation. In order to complete our amazing life journey successfully, it is vital that we turn each and every dark tear into a pearl of wisdom, and find the blessing in every curse.” ― Anthon St. Maarten

“Come with me into the woods where spring is advancing, as it does, no matter what, not being singular or particular, but one of the forever gifts, and certainly visible.” ― Mary Oliver

“It was one of those March days when the sun shines hot and the wind blows cold: when it is summer in the light, and winter in the shade.” ― Charles Dickens

“People were always the limiters of happiness except for the very few that were as good as spring itself.” ― Ernest Hemingway

“In the spring, at the end of the day, you should smell like dirt.” ― Margaret Atwood

“Do you remember the Shire, Mr. Frodo? It'll be spring soon. And the orchards will be in blossom. And the birds will be nesting in the hazel thicket. And they'll be sowing the summer barley in the lower fields... and eating the first of the strawberries with cream. Do you remember the taste of strawberries?” ― J.R.R. Tolkien

“She turned to the sunlight, and shook her yellow head, And whispered to her neighbor: "Winter is dead.” ― A.A. Milne,

“In the midst of winter, I found there was, within me, an invincible summer. And that makes me happy. For it says that no matter how hard the world pushes against me, within me, there’s something stronger – something better, pushing right back.” ― Albert Camus

“If Winter comes, can Spring be far behind?” ― Percy Bysshe Shelley

“Don’t you know what that is? It’s spring fever. That is what the name of it is. And when you’ve got it, you want—oh, you don’t quite know what it is you DO want, but it just fairly makes your heart ache, you want it so!” ― Mark Twain

“And let those who go down the sunset way do so with open eyes, for it is a sacrifice which daunts even the gods. Yet every descent is followed by an ascent; the vanishing shapes are shaped anew, and a truth is valid in the end only if it suffers change and bears new witness in new images, in new tongues, like a new wine that is put into new bottles.” ― Carl Jung

“There is a season for everything under the sun—even when we can’t see the sun.” ― Jared Brock

“In this world we live in, there are new warriors, those who face the world with naked souls. Stripped bare by loss and loneliness, they return to the world, transformed by the richness of courage and silence and a never-ending victory over their spirit. Leaving behind the old, the dead, they live when they had wanted to die: there -lost in the inner darkness - they followed the light leading the way.” ― Judy Croome

“Enlightenment arrives like a thief in the middle of the dark night of the soul.” ― Stefan Emunds

We emerge from darkness in literal and figurative ways. There is much to celebrate as we come out of dark times and look forward to seasons of growth. If you are reading this, you have survived a great journey. This is true for all of us. The human condition is defined by our challenges. I am grateful to once again feel the warmth of sun on my face and see the world burst forth in color.

What are you grateful for today?