Welcome to Spring!

In many traditional calendars, including the Celtic as well as the traditional Chinese calendar, February 2nd is the beginning of Spring - we did it, winter is over!  This may seem like a strange thing to people, as it sure seems we are right in the middle of winter - especially this winter as we find ourselves in the middle of a rather deep freeze. And hey, didn't winter just start on the winter solstice anyways? Read on for deep thoughts on Seasonal Awareness...

One of my favorite things about Chinese medicine is how it perceives the passage of time and the seasons. In the western calendar, the winter solstice is the beginning of winter, and the summer solstice is the beginning of Summer... but, isn't that odd? Isn't that odd that on the Winter Solstice, the very day that the Winter Sun starts to get longer, we say winter has begun? And at the opposite side of the year, at the summer solstice, the very day that the days literally start to get shorter, we say that summer has started!?

Traditional calendars, the Celtic and Chinese among others, bring everything back by a quarter turn.  They say that the winter solstice is the *peak* of winter rather than the start, and that Summer solstice is the *peak* of Summer.  Doesn't that make more sense? 

​Come along with me on this seasonal blog that I'll keep up through the year to explore what the seasons look like through this lens, this lens that I believe is a much more grounded and thoughtful way to perceive seasons.

This picture is of some crocuses I photographed on January 28th some years ago. Here in the DC area, we have fairly mild Winters and, usually, right as we transition from January into February is a very typical time for the very very first of the flowers to begin blooming. This includes the crocuses and the snowdrops, the chickweed and the hen bit... The tiniest and heartiest of the early spring plants begin to peek their fresh green leaves out here. There are still frosts to come, but the stirring and awakening of Spring is undeniable.

You may be wondering, why is this all relevant, anyways? Well, the most fundamental thing we as acupuncturists do is try to keep people in balance with the seasons as much as possible. All health and well-being results from living in balance between Heaven and Earth, and in balance with the seasonal flow.

•  In Summer we shed layers, let the sunshine kiss us, eat lighter fruits and foods, and go frolic in the Summer Sun. We watch our gardens mature.
•  In the Autumn we purge all that is not necessary, we let the leaves fall, we harvest, and before the frost we glean the last of the harvest, putting the garden beds to rest.  
•  In Winter we bundle up and eat warm foods, and hibernate (as best we can). And in that deep deep quiet, we get in touch with the depth of who we are.
•  In Spring, with that knowledge of who we are at our core, we emerge from hibernation with fresh energy, ready to engage the plans that we have devised for the new year. 
  •  This naturally leads us back into Summer, where we can then watch these plans come to their fruition and maturation, and the cycle goes on and on

I think that viewing the seasons from this traditional understanding is really helpful to keep us grounded in the actuality of what's happening in nature. Let me say that more directly - if we don't have a clear understanding of what is happening in nature and where we are in the seasonal process, we are actually lost, and we have truly no bearing for how to stay balanced between heaven and Earth in this seasonal flow.  I'll have more to say about the political nature of this later, but I don't think its a coincidence that modern society is constructed in a way that is confusing, and seems to actually disconnect us from the natural world. 

If we pretend like winter starts at the solstice we've already missed half of winter. A full half of the time that we're meant to be slowing down, hibernating, getting quiet, getting in touch with the depth of ourselves... we are instead still in go mode, we're in the holidays doing Christmas, rushing, traveling, and exhausting ourselves.  And while all of those holidays do have nice traditions around them, much of those traditions begin to seem heretical when it comes to staying in balance with nature. I think it's why so many people get sick in winter because we're rushing and we're going and we're pushing ourselves when our bodies are absolutely demanding to rest.

So keep your eyes peeled, keep your senses open as the very earliest tendrils of spring start to move. We're still going to get wintry weather moving forward... but pay attention to the angle of the sun, pay attention to the warmth of the sun on your skin and see how different that is than the depth of winter. Notice the buds on the trees starting to swell. Notice, whenever the snow melts, the first little plants that are already beginning to come up.

​Even now, with the snow and the ice covering everything, its as if I can feel something building underneath the surface.  Life is not at rest anymore - something is beginning to stir and move. The churn is beginning.

So, have you hibernated deeply enough? Have you gotten in touch with that part of you that you can only hear in the deepest depths of quietude? Have you ever yet had the sublime pleasure of resting in that depth? There is still time to lean into that quiet place, especially with this deep freeze we're getting... but don't hesitate - lest Spring rush forward without you being ready:)

Lastly, I'll have another email and blog post coming out in a couple of weeks. The lunar New Year is also upon us, and on February 17th (just a few days before my Zero Balancing 1 class!) we will shift from the year of the Wood Snake🪵 🐍  to the year of the Fire Horse🔥 🐎!

🐍So here is my recommendation🔥 - for the next two weeks, purge everything that you can.  Shed layers, shed skin, shed energies, shed everything you don't need to bring forward with you. Find a warm spot in the sun, and let the sun warm your bones. Cut your hair, trim your nails, donate that one pile to the thrift store, look deep in your pantry for anything rancid and old... The churn has begun - don't take the dross with you.  In any case, I look forward to riding these coming waves together, as best we can.

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