The first Snowdrop in the beautiful grounds of Westgate Foundation…
February has arrived and the first signs of new life are appearing. Even though the ground temperatures remain far below the six degrees required for growth to begin, there are still some brave and resilient hearts producing new life.
Spring is a time of transition, of possibility and hope. Snowdrop and crocus bulbs that lay dormant in the cold winter earth, now know it’s time to burst forth, as they are called by the ever-warming sun. They appear new and fully transformed bringing colour and joy after a bleak winter.
We too are invited to new growth and possibilities at this time of year; to emerge from the ‘bulb’ of last year and embrace the new and wonderful possibilities that lie within and around us.
Our future is calling us to step away from what has been
and to cooperate with what is unfolding
– Jett Psaris
This is where we, unlike the flower have choice. We can respond by embracing the possibilities, hopes, dreams, capacities and potential that lies within us. We can “risk our significance” as Dawna Markova puts it, and embark on the journey of discovery of what is.
Or we can dive into the fears, doubts, uncertainties and worries that will prevent us from embracing the continuous development and transformation that enables us to live lives that become more and more more satisfying, authentic and aligned with our soul’s purpose. Otherwise life becomes an endless repetition of what is, instead of a fresh unfolding of never-ending discovery.
Listen, are you breathing just a little,
and calling it a life?
-Mary Oliver
Ken Wilber challenges us to develop “vertically”. If you imagine a tall building vertical transformation is moving from one floor to a higher floor, whereas, horizontal activity is moving the furniture around on the same floor.
I invite you to go find the lift or stairs to the next floor,
be curious about what is up there,
be interested in what will lead you there
and take the first step, today, however small,
and when you do…
May you see what you see through new eyes,
hear what you hear through different ears,
May you taste what you have never tasted before,
and go deeper than your shallow self.
–Masai Prayer
and in your exploration know that…
There is no end in nature,
but every end is a new beginning,
and under every deep
a lower deep opens.
– Ralph Waldo Emerson