Springtime & Shadows
A meditation for anxious times
Dear Friend,
This week, I’m getting ready to celebrate Passover, the Jewish holiday of freedom and liberation that arrives next Saturday night. I love that Passover is a springtime holiday; it arrives just as tulips and daffodils are in full bloom where I live. The earth returning to life feels magical.
I have a lot to celebrate this year, beside life itself, which is more than enough. I’m grateful that my Dad, who turns 88 today, can be with us to enjoy the holiday. I’m grateful to pull out old recipes, plan menus and spend time cooking favorite holiday foods for family and guests.
There’s also a sadness I’m holding that I know will have its own seat at our holiday table. Maybe you’re feeling it, too? Every day, watching freedoms and protections and civility that I took for granted fall away leaves me frightened, sad, perplexed.
At the Passover seder, we have a ritual way of tasting sweet and bitter flavors together. I think I understand, more than ever, why it’s important to name both tastes as part of the story we tell.
Giving voice to the sadness, anger, fear or whatever we might be feeling feels essential to taking care of ourselves, for acknowledging all we experience in this crazy thing called being a human.
For a different creative way to imagine and express the beauty and the hard stuff, I have a guided meditation for you. It’s an imaginal journey into spring’s beauty, where there’s an invitation to simply notice what may be lurking in the shadows and invite it to come be with you in the light.
Writing Practice: Set aside 5-7 minutes for this practice. Write in a journal or open a ‘Journey with The Season’ document where you can return each Sunday.
Prompt: You’ll find the guided meditation at the arrow above. Take a listen. What did you see, feel, hear, smell, sense on your journey?
What images and visions came up for you during this meditation?
You can write about shadow and light, worry and wonder, fear and beauty.
If you struggled with the meditation, no worries. Sit with this question for a few minutes and then write: What hopes, prayers or wishes am I carrying inside right now that I haven’t shared with anyone or spoken out loud? What fears or concerns am I carrying?
Start writing and keep writing! Even if you write ‘I don’t know’ for a while, something else will come.
I would love to read your expressions. Feel free to comment below or use the messaging app to reach me.
Spiritual Practice for the week ahead: Pay attention to light and shadow, in the landscape and in what you’re feeling. Try journaling before bed about something beautiful you noticed in your spring landscape or in your life. Writing can strengthen our gratitude muscles–and give us a place to release fear and concern.
Wishing you a week with much springtime magic and a sense of love holding you through everything that you feel…With love, Gabrielle Ariella