Tomorrow begins our Memorial Day holiday weekend, so my colleagues and I thought it a good time to sit down and go over our calendar for the rest of the year.  I nearly fell out of my seat!  Three more weeks of classes??  There is still so much for us to do.  (Let’s not even consider the dust-covered reference in need of weeding.) 

Now for the past two months I have been patiently (sort of) enduring the freezing rain and grey sky, along with the unusually slow first blooms of spring, in the great anticipation of summer vacation, as most of my teacher-friends will sympathetically understand.  But sitting down today with the May and June calendars set in front of me made me wish things could slow down… just a little, and reminded me of the importance of being mindful and present and truly appreciating the wheel of the year.

The wheel of the year, for me, has to do with more than just seasonal changes; it has to do with deeply personal changes as well.  Anyone in tune with nature may inherently understand this.  (Really FEELING the seasons was one thing I sorely missed when living in the tropical climate of Florida for six years).  The wheel of MY year is as follows:

Spring – Spring is the time for rebirth in nature.  It is the season for spotting baby wildlife and daffodils pushing their way through cold, stubborn soil.  Personally, it is also the season for burgeoning ideas.  This is the time I take stock of what worked and didn’t work for my library program over the course of the school year, as well as in my personal life, and I begin to plan.

Summer – During summer, nature is in full swing.  All animals, birds, and bugs (eww) are out and about.  The weather permits all sorts of outdoor activity and the mood is generally festive.  Summer, for many, is a season for action.  During the summer, if I am not working, I usually take some type of class or try something new.  (Last summer it was stand-up paddle boarding!)

Fall – Fall is the harvesting season.  We reap the benefits of the previous year’s hard work.  The leaves begin to burst forth with amazing colors, wilt, and then drop to the ground.  The animals begin to forage in preparation for the cold.  Fall, with the beginning of the new school year is a time for letting go of everything, both good and bad, in preparation for the new.  (New backpack, new notebooks, new attitude)

Winter – The trees are bare.  The air is chill.  The birds are silent.  Fauna is in hibernation.  This used to be the toughest month for me, as I so love the outdoors and sun on my face.  But as we humans are forced inside and out of the elements, winter becomes a time for introspection and HYGGE.  Instead of sunshine, there is candlelight and fireplaces, warm blankets and hot tea.  For me, winter is the easiest season during which to meditate.  With the holidays it is also the time to make a marked effort to reconnect with family and friends who may have been neglected during the bustle of the other seasons.

To conclude, as we yearn for those last days of school leading to summer, be mindful of the natural and personal changes occurring throughout the wheel of the year.  (Well… we can be a LITTLE psyched for the beach!)