Seasons change – coming full circle

Nature doesn’t adhere to a calendar. It has its own timing. There is a moment for everything under the sun, as the quote goes, and the seasons allow for renewal, growth, change, and rest in equal measure. We can learn a lot about life from its cycles and processes. That each is important, none more so than another. And all are necessary.

Life springs from the ground and bursts from branches in shoots and buds. Now is the time for emergence, growth, possibility. The migratory birds return, bringing more movement to the skies. The land too, starts to transition.

A light blanket of green replac the blonde grass and dust of winter as the first rains arrive. Celebrate the return of the skin-warming sun and drink in the sounds and sights of life slowly but determinedly stirring.

The green season is nature in full flow – at its most vital and energised, its most dynamic and transformed. New life is everywhere. Baby animals abound, and game spreads out. The air is hot and, in the afternoon, starts to feel heavier.

With the sun starting to descend to mid heaven comes the sound of storms rumbling in the distance. This is the reprieve – a burst of freshness to cool the ground and soak the soil. Vital to quench the thirst of animals and plants. The respite is short but dramatic. Breathe in the moisture-laden air, watch a rainbow emerge.

The seasons are neither here nor there. For now, days merge into one another, reaching an equilibrium. They’re mild, not cold. Crisp and cool in the morning, gradually warming in the daytime’s gentle sun.

This limbo – a period of being in between – is a time to just be, to wait and watch. This is not a time to hurry, but one to move slower, and allow processes to unfold as they must. Sit in stillness, enjoy the gentle but insistent change around you, and marvel as foliage shifts gradually from green to gold.

The air is crisp and bitingly fresh; the skies are blue, and clear. Vegetation along the landscape is thin and sparse, spaces are more open and trees and bushes spread out. In the cold though, animals gather together to drink, drawn together by scarcity. Steam rises off the water.

The bush is dry but still, and always, teeming with life. Sheltering to conserve energy and keep warm. The landscape’s many shades of blonde and brown blend with the earth, creating a merging of things, and wrapping you tightly like a blanket. Warm yourself by the fire, reflect on a day well spent.