Changing Seasons

Sorry I haven't been very active lately. Mom has been distracted and hasn't been able to transcribe for me. My paws are pretty clumsy with a keyboard. Today, though, I found some inspiration I couldn't keep to myself.

Last week, the outside temperature was in the 70's. The 70's!!!! It seemed like just yesterday I was complaining about -55 degree wind chill! And then out of nowhere, 70's! Amazing. As I was sitting on my deck, looking at the many trees budding, I thought about the passing seasons. In the dead of winter, it's really difficult to remember what it feels like to walk outside and not have my paws freeze. I forget what the grass feels like underneath my paws. I forget how fun it is to sniff all the spring smells. I forget how my ears feel as they blow in the 70 degree weather. I forget how the sun feels on my fur. And in an instant, everything changes. Back to 70 degrees. And now my freezing paws seem like a distant memory.

Mental illness can easily be compared to the changing seasons. When you're in the depths of sorrow, it's hard to remember what it feels like to be free and happy. When you're free and happy, it's hard to remember what the depths of sorrow felt like. But here's the thing- seasons change. The bad can feel like it'll last forever, but it doesn't. In today's world, it's easy to get caught up in instant gratification culture and wanting to feel better right now or wanting a bad situation to resolve immediately. Some things take time. Sometimes the leaves have to fall and the tree has to look sad and terrible for a few months to make room for new life in the spring.

New life takes patience and belief things can/will get better. Will it stay better forever? No, that'd be monstrously boring. Think about watching a movie where the main character has something bad happen to them in the fist five minutes, the conflict immediately resolves, and the rest of the movie is about their perfect life. Would you watch that movie? Of course not. It would lack the components of a good story.

With your one life, why would you want to tell a boring, quick-conflict-resolving-story? Let the seasons change. Sit in the uncomfortableness of -55 degree weather. Enjoy the 70 degree breeze. Tell a great story with your life.