…verb: dare to do something or go somewhere that may be dangerous or unpleasant.
The garden is bursting with activity and buzzing with bees and blossoming in the clear sunlight. Happy May Day! The benefits of growth and change are easy to see, as colors shift and transform almost before my eyes. These days, the urge to rove and roam, express and explore feels linked with the rhythms of the season. Leaving my warm winter nest and poking my head out, like a bud shivering to bloom fills me with excitement and a little trepidation.
The beginning of anything always brings up doubts and questions about my capacity to achieve and surmount my own internal hurdles. Taking the time to wonder, examine and re-write stories about who I am and what I can do is invaluable before setting out. The stories have almost certainly changed over my dormant winter, parts of myself fallen away, tender new shoots springing up in my hair. I reconcile these changes and figure a fresh way forward.
Of course, our relationships have shifted as well. I hope the connections are fresh and free of the debris of neglect, and if not, having a simple chat or an elaborate evaluation can be useful for protecting those relationships that are crucial to our continued smooth sailing toward our destinations. My computer passed away last month and I didn’t clean it enough or otherwise keep up on its maintenance. It was old, yes, or to use the language of the genius bar: obsolete.
I’ve got all kinds of plans for protecting my computer investment this time: regular maintenance, backups, protective covers, all the good things. In a few years it will likely also be obsolete, but I have surrendered to the powers of capitalism, at least where computers are concerned.
It’s a great season to share my book with my friends, celebrate my birthday, play in the garden and begin new projects. I’m choosing this time to dare, to challenge my notions and journey out in the search for bigger dreams and realizing new goals, firing up old ones, going for it! May your adventures be challenging and rewarding for you and your communities in surprising ways.