Passing through seasons

Passing through Seasons

As the leaves change their colors

And the cooler air blows in

I look forward to the change

ushered in by a new season. 

Yet at the same time I grieve

for the summer days now past

for the warmth of the sun

and the late sunlight that won't last.

I watch the flowers shrivel up

and mourn their loss in the months ahead

I breathe the crisp cool air

Thankful the sticky heat has fled. 

I long for carefree summer time

As I settle back into the workday

Just as I savor moments snuggled by a fire

Before the winter ice melts away. 

We live through the cycle of seasons

Each one carrying loss along with hope

Each season holds both a treasure

And a hardship with which we must cope

Yet each one has a purpose

A time to cherish what we see

A time to reflect on what was

And to imagine what will be.

Without the cycle of change

we fall into a monotonous rut

forgetting to cherish and savor the moments

before the curtain closes each season shut.

No season should be wasted

simply longing for comfort from before

or enduring through to the end,

always wanting something more. 

The past is the past

Those seasons are gone.

To miss the joy of today's season

Seems so utterly wrong. 

So savor winter fires

While breathing in the scent of spring

Soak up the late summer nights

And all the colors fall will bring.

Cherish your memories

Made in your seasons gone by

Embrace the purpose of the present

before another season draws nigh. 

Living in Texas for 19 years can easily make you forget God's beautiful transition between seasons. I grew up with all four very distinct seasons until my son was born, and then the warm Texas sun spread summer out longer and stole those magical moments that defined all four seasons in unique ways. Coming back to Indiana and now living and working out in nature, I'm mesmerized by the beauty that each season holds. And I'm reminded that each season holds loss, treasure, and hope. Each season starts with all things lost from the previous season, and we make a mental note to cherish all those things a little bit more next time around. Each one also holds treasure, something special that God does that's different from his activity in other seasons. And it also promises hope for life or pleasure in the upcoming season. They all remind us of the reality of life, the way it happens in seasons, each one holding purpose. Many times we spend our energy and emotion either trying too hard to hold on to a season beyond its allotted time, trying to speed up an uncomfortable season so we can leave it prematurely, or looking back at seasons gone by, thinking the present season can't possibly hold the same value. In doing so, we forget that they're just seasons, each with an intended purpose and time. 

When I look back at pictures or at memories on Facebook, I can wish for those days back or I can cherish them for the memories made in that specific season. When I experience life in the present, I can savor it either for the treasures it brings or for what I'm learning and how I'm growing through a hardship. When I look ahead to the future, I can be grateful and excited for new seasons, new learning opportunities, new relationships, and new perspective up ahead. God gave us seasons for a reason. There's just something magical that happens when the temperature changes, the leaves change color, today shrivels up and tomorrow emerges as something completely new and different.