Blooming Where We Are Planted, and Happy May Day!

photo by alicia fish

Growing up, my thoughtful mother would prepare and make little paper baskets every May 1, fill them with flowers, and then we'd all get in the car and go hang the flower-filled baskets on friends' front door handles. My mother: always spreading light to those around her.

It's a tradition I want to continue, but always seem to forget until... May 1. Mid-day or evening. Mom, how did you always seem to have it all together for this minor holiday?

Instead of sending blossoms to friends, I rejoiced in the first of May by running in the sunshine (it was snowing last week here in Utah, so the sunshine is a big deal!) and teaching yoga in the perfectly temperatured space (no heater or a/c needed!). I set bottles of essential oils out around our yoga mats—lemon, orange, and grapefruit—to let the scent invigorate our practice. We breathed deeply. The air was fresh and sweet.

__

A couple weeks ago a new friend of mine, Ashley from BigToughGirl, gifted me a little frame with a single sentence inside of it: "At the end of today, I want to feel _______." This frame now sits on my bedside table and I ponder this idea every morning. The concept is similar to setting intentions, mantras, and affirmations. But this concept is focused on a single day: At the end of today, this is how I want to feel, and so I will be intentional about my activities and thoughts throughout the day so they will lead me to that feeling. I love that, and I love Ashley! And this leads me to...

Blooming where we are planted. Starting today. Where we are right now. 

That can mean today—how do you want to feel at the end of today, and what can you do to get there?This may mean this first week of May, with its promise of sunshine and blossoming branches. And it may mean this month—a whole new month to move forward (I don't know much about the lunar calendar, but I have heard that many people experience unusual stress, frustration, or other low emotions when Mercury is in retrograde, which it has been. But according to my research, this ends May 3. So for many, this new month will be very, very welcomed!)

Let's start right now, this moment, today, this week, this month. Shake off the heaviness, plant our feet firmly on the ground, and bloom where we are. (This declaration is as much for the group of us as it is for me individually. I'm tired of this heaviness, and I am ready to bloom.)

Happy May Day, friends! Feel free to pretend that this little essay is tucked into a branch of blossoms in a paper basket on your door knob!