Here in northern New England, March is still winter. Yes, the Spring Equinox is coming up next week, and the sunlight has that deep yellow quality to it now. But the ground is still covered with snow, and we’re getting more as I write. March tends to be a low point for me. Maybe it’s the weather, or the fact that my beloved grandmother died on the Ides of March, back when I was still a teenager.

I’ve been observing my personal cycles recently, particularly the solar (yearly) ones, and sure enough, as my journal entries reflect, March is often a struggle. But the thing is, it usually leads to rebirth of one sort or another. And rebirth, like birth, is a messy process. So is the advent of spring, with its mud and rain and all the trash along the roadsides, revealed as the snow melts.

But early spring is also about change, letting go, sloughing off what is no longer needed. New ideas and projects are like the fresh shoots slowly pushing up through the composted soil. They may be as yet unseen, but they’re present underneath the surface. The spiritual seeds we planted at Imbolc are busy doing their thing. At this point in the year, growing our crop of goals and dreams requires patience, time, and more patience.

It also involves a willingness to let the whole process, this container for growth, evolve and change as needed. I won’t let it being March become an excuse not to take inspired action toward my goals. What I will do: be tender with myself, practice extra self-care, and follow my inspirations. I will listen to my intuition and follow its whispered suggestions. The heart always knows what we need.

Spring, in my experience, is a gradual awakening into a part of the cycle that is fresh and new each year, yet also eternal. This ancient cycle is sacred, and when I honor my place in it, I thrive. Blessings in your transition to Spring!