Hope Shines Through the Darkness

Even though it is early March, and no doubt some colder days and a snow storm or two still lies ahead, the temperatures have warmed up and the last of the snow and ice outside has melted away. Spring is in the air - you can see it in the thawing landscape, feel the breezes of it against your bare skin, hear it in the crescendo of birdsong outside and smell the earthy, wetness of it!

And with this early taste of Spring, comes the renewal of hope. As we watch nature prepare to transition from the dormancy and inactivity of Winter to the resuscitation and rebirth of Spring, it is comforting to focus on our innate ability to do the same. The difficult, dark periods of our lives - bouts of depression, trauma, significant losses and overwhelming disappointments - may seem like they will last forever, but there is always the ability for them to shift and transform.

Nature teaches me about transformation every year as I observe and experience the changing seasons. Just as my journey with clinical depression teaches me the same thing: everything has the power to shift, to metamorphosize into something new. You can count on it! Our job is simply (and not so simply!) to be courageous and patient as we wait for time to work it's organic miracles.

HOPE SHINES IN THE DARKNESS

A hint of the sun as it strains to peak through the fog: I think I can, I think I can...

"It was as though the heavens were sending her a sign, telling her that even though her world was glum and cloudy, there was always beauty to be found if you just wait a little bit longer. Even in the darkest of times, there was always hope shining through the darkness."