feels like springtime
There are a few weeks each winter here in our little part of Oregon that always feel like springtime has arrived early. And that time feels like now. Walking Abbi dog today I watched meadow larks flushing from the fields and ducks flocking the ponds. Even saw a toad dive into the creek and wow the sunbeams shining through the clouds felt unbelievably warm. Makes me want to start prepping my yard for planting. Actually, I did that last year a little too early and well, let’s just say, things all worked out despite being early.
As we walked today I recorded a little audio description of everything happening around me. Not necessarily to share but it just felt right to do in the moment. Similar to recording a video or taking lots of pictures I suppose. Hoping the bird calls and wind recorded too for they were as much of the experience as anything. There’s so much more to a moment that can be lost in the action of snapping a picture. So much more to feel and experience in each singular moment. Do you feel the wind? Do you smell the rain? Do you feel kissed the sunbeams? Does it feel like the birds are dancing around you …. flying in their patterns? Do you get your feet wet on purpose or notice the texture of the ground? Do you stand under trees just to feel small in their presence or under open skies to experience the expanse?
A moment can never entirely be captured in a photo. But when you can pause and experience a moment before snapping the photo it will create so much more meaning to your memory.
When I look back at pictures I took kayaking under the cliffs or sitting with my feet in the lake pebbles I can intimately feel every experience I had in those very moments. I can feel them still because I paused in them and loved them deep in their space.
Exactly why I like to share nature with others. I look forward to doing just that this coming summer!! Maybe they will learn to experience these spaces as I’ve learned to. Every good thing has to start someplace right?! And it’s an even better thing when it’s shared.
Do you have a place that feels more like you than anywhere else you’ve been? Maybe it’s the experience, the people or the amount of time you were there that makes it feel that way? If you do you have a real treasure.
Spring will come soon enough but for now I’m going to enjoy these warm bits of winter. I love the cold of winter days a lot but am learning to enjoy the warm ones too. It’s not a gray wet space to avoid anymore. It feels good.
