Spring is a State of Mind

When you woke up this morning, what was your frame of mind? Was today simply the day after yesterday, and just a prelude to tomorrow? Or was this morning the beginning of a new chapter, the first page in a book called “the Rest of Your Life”?

 Sometimes we can feel trapped in the flow of time, chained to our past and unable to change our future. We feel imprisoned by our circumstances.  

 On the other hand, it’s great to have a fresh start. It’s exhilarating to feel unencumbered by history, and to have a clean slate. It makes me feel energized and alive, with a broad field of opportunities to explore.

 Every day, I can have that attitude. Every day, I need to believe that I can change my behavioral patterns and better my future.

 Think of it in seasonal terms. The winter months seem to have nature in a frozen holding pattern. Nothing blooms, nothing blossoms. Some creatures even enter into hibernation. Winter is the sound of silence.

 Enter Spring. Shaking off its lethargy, the world regains its pulse and begins to show  vitality. With the birds chirping, the bees buzzing and Spring’s upbeat scent, there’s a can-do sense of rejuvenation.

 Taking this to my own life, my psycho-spiritual ‘winter’ is where I’m frozen in my status quo. I’m enslaved to my habits, and it seems that a new ‘me’ can never blossom.

 With my internal ‘Spring’, a new ‘me’ can begin to blossom. Right now. I can change the steps of my ‘dance’, and pursue endless possibilities for true growth. The future is bright.

 Which brings us to Passover. This Spring Holiday celebrates our internal sense of freedom. Real, personal freedom.

 Passover isn’t only about the freedom from our Egyptian masters. It’s about liberation from our internal Egypt, which still holds us hostage. On Passover, we thank G-d for the ability to find true inner freedom; the freedom to reach our potential.

 Passover teaches me not to wait for the vernal equinox; every morning can be my individual Spring. Every morning needs to be my personal Exodus from my weaker self.

 This year, live the Passover Holiday. Live it consciously, so that the message lives all year round.