Spring has arrived this year in U.K at the exact same time that we are coming out of lockdown. There is always an injection of positivity that comes with spring. You feel good because you have survived another winter and you are finally emerging from your semi-hibernation as the sun also emerges from its own. This feeling, synchronised with the release from lockdown, has created a sense of hope emanating from everywhere & everyone. We have finally come out the other side of a long dark tunnel and we don’t ever want to go back in there again.
Everyone is still fearful of an unknown future but now is not the time to focus on what might happen down the line. We must enjoy this moment. It is time to live again. Yes, we must remain precautious (not a word, still trying to make it a word) but we must lighten our load for a while. We cannot carry the burden of misery on our shoulders at all times. It is too heavy a toll on our psyches. As we are now officially in a lull we have to make the most of it and re-adopt a lightness to living in order to purge ourselves of the heaviness we have all been under these last few months.
And for now, we must remain hopeful. Until proven otherwise. Hope not fear is the order of the day. Even if it is false hope, it is still hope. In fact, technically all hope is false because it is not based on fact. It is based on desire and will. It requires faith in a future not yet known. Hope is also a defence mechanism which shields you from the debilitating effects of pessimism. And both the pro (and the con) of hope is that it prevents your brain from accepting negative scenarios even when directly faced with them.
And yet it is hope that will ultimately propel you towards that imagined positive outcome. You will not and can not get there without it. So now is not the time for doom n gloom & relentless despair. We cannot make these negative outlooks our default mode. Look to nature. See how it blooms and blossoms. It shines with optimism. Let spring guide us…
