Spring

As the mild weather of March melts the dreaded snow, have you ever wondered why the season after winter is called spring?

The word “spring” as intransitive verb can be defined _ ‘to move back rapidly to an original position after being forced in another direction.’ The definition makes perfect sense. Spring brings back the colors that the cold winter had erased. The trees regain the lost leaves on their dead-looking branches; once more the grass turns greener ; the beautiful vibrant tulips emerge; and the perennials in the garden come back to life in full bloom as the returning birds chirp the coming of spring.

Is it a coincidence that the celebration of the Resurrection of our Lord Jesus falls in the spring? Did God plan it that way so we can easily relate the season of coming-back-to-life to Easter Sunday? From every angle, no matter how you slice it, all indications point to a thundering, Yes!

To us Christians, Easter Sunday is not about bunnies and children hunting egg-shaped chocolates. Neither is it limited to God’s message that His son died for us to save our sins. It expands far more  than that. We should see beyond the tomb where Jesus sprung to life. Resurrection has the underlying message of awakening - bringing back to life our goodness that was deeply buried in our selfish thoughts.

All of us have been hurt at one time in our lives. Some of the pains that we harbor are so agonizing that we have forgotten to forgive the aggressor who had offended us. We have been immersed in our failures and self-pity that we turned to blaming others and overlooked the power of prayer. Our potential in making more money to pamper our endless whims has made us lost our grip in our Christian values. We have neglected the importance of giving and have taken for granted  the  quality time with our families. We have given in to the abundance of man-made comfort, making us less energetic and allowing our bodies to erode away. We have become so content that we have missed the big picture of spring - its splendor and its meaning.

So come spring, when the birds are singing, stop whatever you are doing. Pause for a moment and listen. Wake yourself up. You have been in hibernation for too long. Pick up that shovel and start digging up the buried goodness in you.

Spring time is the season for all of us _ to reconnect spiritually  and  rediscover our good old selves.