To New Beginnings

Spring is a time of rebirth and rejuvenation. Where nature starts anew after a long cold winter. Sometimes relationships must also follow the path of nature. The end of one relationship lets the doors open for another to begin. 

Sometimes the new is found in unexpected places. Like some grass growing in the crack of a sidewalk. Surrounded with leaves and brush, you would never expect the cement sidewalk underneath. Nature found the crack with the dirt and started to grow. 

The beauty of nature is that something as beautiful as a tulip, will grow anywhere. This tulip bulb is along a walking path heavily lined with trees, yet still found the sun to grow. 

What looks and feels like sludge on the surface, is ready to grow and heal underneath. It just needs a little time and sunshine! This gully will soon be overgrown with greenery. 

Sometimes we are afraid to disrupt our lives because we are so used to the calm at the top of the waterfall. We feel that we are not strong enough to handle the pressure of going over the edge into the rushing stream below. But with time, just down the stream a bit, calm is restored. 

Spring is a time for rebirth and rejuvenation. This lilac bush is producing buds and will soon fill the air with a sweet fragrance.

We are stronger than we think. Once we are past the hurt, the changes, and are into the unknown, we realize that this is where we were meant to be. 

Just Under the Surface

I work really close to the East Paris Nature Park, a small trail that branches off from the Thornapple Trail in our West Michigan suburb. It makes for a lovely lunchtime break to walk to the nature park, loop around the small lakes and islands, and enjoy the sunshine.

If you look close enough, there's burgeoning BUDS!
Spring is really here!

After the hissing incident

The nature park is adjacent to an elementary school (on Spring Break this week), and a small residential neighborhood. The rest of the area is mostly commercial, which is why it's such a joy to encounter wildlife along the trail.

Even though I am a human, and a tall one at that, I'm never super comfortable walking close to Canada geese. What nasty little buggers! I learned long ago to not make eye contact and walk quickly by as they hiss and flap their wings. Today was no exception, even though I gave the courting pair a wide berth, they failed to return the kindness by letting me pass in peace.

I noticed how the change of seasons impacts humans as well as animals. The garter snake unabashedly sunning on the trail. The ducks and geese paring up before mating season begins (one pair of Canada geese looked like were getting *ahem* a jump on things in the procreation arena). Birds flitting around gathering nest materials. Sun-starved office workers taking advantage of the lovely day for a stroll.

Even snakes need Vitamin D

What struck me today was twofold:

• Seeing wildlife continuing with the rhythms and stages of life was soothing and encouraging. Making a long migration, foraging for food while things are still growing, finding a mate (or reconnecting with an old flame) is all part of their rhythm and circle of life. Since my life's been a bit topsy-turvy lately, seeing physical evidence of this basic pattern grounded me.
• In a matter of weeks, what looks brown and dead will come alive with the blooms, buds, flowers, leaves, and stems of spring. The brown will turn green. And it's all happening RIGHT NOW. Even though I can't see it. All those blooms and leaves are forming right now in all the tree roots and wildflower stems, waiting for the right time to burst open and start their own circle of life.

I found comfort in the rhythm and stages of life (minus the hissing--we can all do with less hissing). I found inspiration and challenge in the fact that we truly don't know what is going on beneath the surface of any number of things--plants, flowers, and people. What looks desolate, dead, and depressing will turn vibrant and alive in a few short weeks. This gives me pause when I think about things in my own life, and also how I treat others. To me, it's a sobering lesson in perspective and what we truly KNOW about any number of things, situations, and people.

The new life is right around the corner. I can't wait.

And this is why...

Season 2 of trail shenanigans has started! Is it sad that I am as excited as a 16 year old school girl going to her first prom? Or is it that the older you get, you learn to appreciate the simpler things in life that provide so much more than you previously would of imagined, just the "simple" sunset above for instance, stopped me dead in my tracks commenting out-loud that it was gorgeous, while pulling out my phone to take a shot, making use of the camera for something worth while instead of capturing something mind mindbogglingly childish or to capture someone's misfortune (Yep, I am guilty of that... and you are too no doubt!):)

And this is why.. I love hitting the trail, especially at dusk, it just resets my perspective, from all the daily bustle of time frames and deadlines.

This is obviously my first post of the season which I most likely be using as a reference point, to prove that I actually can be serious since its highly likely I'll have a few silly images and posts along the way:)

Cheers!

Spring Always Comes

Hi there! I'm Jennifer. Heather graciously invited me to post my Talez from the Trail. I'm an avid walker, avid knitter, avid reader, avid vacationer, and a fan of all things pop culture-y. In my real life I manage a website and social media for a non-profit organization.  

Today I did two things I hardly ever do:

1. Went for a walk when there were important sporting events on network TV (I'm too cheap for cable and a huge sports fan).*
2. Listened to the same song on repeat for the entire walk.

* Calm down; I started walking during halftime of the Michigan State/UConn game and only missed a bit of the second half. 

The song I listened to was "Chocolate" from The 1975. It's super catchy, and as I did my dorky head-bops and hand grooves down the street, I kept hearing this line: "We're never gonna quit it, no, we're never gonna quit it, no." It made me smile and believe. 

It's been an exceptionally tough six months. The best way to put it is that I felt like resigning from life. Nothing more serious than that, but I was just DONE. Done with this horrible winter. Done giving and giving and giving. Done with perplexing, heartbreaking behavior. Done with having to sit at home with a sprained ankle. Done.

I've had a hard time seeing an end to this bewilderingly tough season of life, even though I KNEW there would be an end. But spring always comes. (Unless it's Game of Thrones, and I can't even tackle that "winter is coming" business today.) 

Spring always comes. There's days when it's 47° and sunny. There's days when I actually want to dance instead of crying. There's days when I realize that I'm not quitting, not giving up and am strong. I'm seeing spring even though there are still massive snowbanks everywhere. I'm enjoying the epic goose battles outside my window because it means that spring is here--a new season, a new start, a new hope.

I'm a God person, so along with spring always coming, I also know that after every Good Friday there comes an Easter Sunday. No matter how dark and hopeless things are (and believe me, I've lived that hopelessness since October), there is a resurrection that defies belief. I saw a tiny glimpse of that today. And I'm not quitting.

[Upon coming home and reading the lyrics, I'm pretty sure this song is about drugs. Don't do drugs, kids. For real. But they also talk about guns under their petticoats, which is tremendous. Free pass, The 1975. Thanks for helping me through a tough spot.]

Season II begins!

First walk of the season. Don't let the sun fool you. It was only 32 degrees!

You are probably asking yourself "Season II? What happened to Season I?" Rest assured, Season I happened but just in FB posts. Maybe this season we will have flashback posts. 

Secondly, if you came from Pinterest you are probably wondering how this is health related. 2.94 miles 452 calories burned. BOO YAH!

I like how the sun shined off the wet pavement. The trail had been plowed in some parts so that was clear to walk. 

There was quite the collection of poo on the trail. Let's hope it from a dog and people are just confused about how to pick up after their pets in the winter. Way to keep the trail clean for all to use!

 

A little off the beaten trail is a paved shortcut through some backyards. The snow and ice was a little treacherous but I snapped this cool shot of some graffiti.