Transition

Wednesday, March 24, 2010, 08:23 PM AST [General] I have always thought of spring and fall as the transitional seasons. This is especially true here in the northern part of the United States, where people often will say "if you don't like the weather, wait five minutes". Things do indeed change quickly; one days there's snow, the next , 50 degrees and sunny. These sudden changes can often reflect events that are occurring in our lives. For survivors, change be welcome, unsettling, exciting and frightening all at once. Maybe that's why the transitional seasons evoke so much nostalgia. Maybe they trigger memories of times in our lives where change was immanent or needed. These are powerful times. Most survivors know the fear and anticipation mixed with hope that can accompany change; especially change for the better. We desperately want to be out of our abusive situations yet we fear the unknown. We fear our abilities to cope with the demands of a "new life". We have probably been convinced by our abusers that we are incapable of caring for ourselves. And yet with the tenacity of a crocus reaching toward the sun, steeling itself against the unexpected snowfall and finally blossoming in beauty, we press on, we survive and finally, we thrive. But just as the crocus bulb is genetically encoded to retreat and rest after blooming, waiting to return next the following spring, we remain aware that change is an inevitable and necessary fact of life. We don't always welcome change, like the unexpected snowfall, but with tenacity we can hang in there until the next sunny day. Happy Spring © 2010, Jenifer Hazard