Brave Enough to Bud

How nature's seasons support your life's cycles.

Brave enough to bud. Walking Machi on another gray, cold, cloudy Michigan morning. My mood shifts upon seeing this little tree. I was in Nashville, October thru early December, so I almost didn’t recognize her without her autumn dress.

There she was, standing alone. Not even a sparrow on her branches. A crumpled windswept nest lies near her roots. More evidence of Michigan’s harsh, bleak winters. Yet, she is brave enough to bud.

How many winters has she endured freezing temps, scarce sunlight, sleeting rain, and heavy snowfalls? And still, she is brave enough to bud, taking next step, and moving closer towards blossoming.

After living in Santa Barbara and Ojai for 8 years, returning to Michigan winters is harsh on my body and mind. Morning walks in Cali barefooted me on desolate beaches, hemmed between succulent green cliffs and rolling waves. In Michigan, while temporarily sheltering in suburban landscape, survival skills include looking past concrete pathways and cloudy skies in order (and holy chaos) to seek nature in her subtle beauty. Like this solitary tree, hemmed between concrete and asphalt. She is brave enough to bud in hinterland of spring.

Here we are, an intersection of the hinterland of wild change, middle ground of winter, and starting gate of new year. A lot of us, separated from loved ones are standing alone. Perhaps harsh things are happening in your daily landscape. Or, seasonal cycles and emotional weather conditions make you wonder if a springtime blossoming, be it geographical move or family reunion, is even possible. Are you questioning your ability to bud career dreams or creative goals?

Heck...me too. But, then I remember, courage supersedes ability. Hope, faith, joy, and prayer always portal me to my Soul. I hear the tree cheering me on, and once again I root into faith and hope.

Even in a bleak, dreary Michigan winter, during a pandemic, and intense national upheavals, I am brave enough to bud.