#16- Spring Weather, Mockingbirds, & Growth

I’ve often wondered why Spring is many peoples’ favorite season. I think one reason is because of what comes before spring. Winter. When outside, it’s freezing cold, & everything seems dead; spring seems miles away! But it’s only because winter comes first that we can appreciate spring the way we do. To take this a step further, Winter is what gets us to Spring. Without Winter, nothing could blossom & grow.

To connect this to our circumstances, sometimes, we feel totally stuck and trapped & want to give up. Our challenges are too difficult. The sky is grey; everything looks hopeless and bleak. The strong cold and winds are cutting through us.

But spring reminds us that changes do take place! What seems impossible does happen! We won’t be stuck in this position forever!

At times, for whatever reason, Hashem sends us a “winter” that we need to go through. And it’s tough; we feel like we won’t make it through. When that happens, we need to remember that just like every year, winter fades into spring; one day, this difficulty will, too, fade away.

Furthermore, this winter that we are now going through is preparing us for a beautiful spring!

On a personal note, I see how I’m discovering parts of myself that I never knew I had from going through my challenge with shidduchim. Don’t get me wrong; I’m no tzaddeikes!!! I do have all the normal downs as well!! At the same time, if I do have to be very honest, I can see how I’ve grown in certain ways as a result of this challenge that I’m going through.

Which brings me to the song of the Unmated Mockingbird.

I enjoy nature and read something very interesting in my bird book about a Mockingbird. (Yes, I know I sound like an 80-year-old grandma😉)

As we know, springtime is when birds mate & then build nests, where they will raise their young. The male Mockingbirds who don’t find a mate right away do a very fascinating thing until they do find their mate. In the middle of the night, they start singing gorgeous, intricate songs that can last for 5 minutes straight. The unmated male mockingbirds do this to attract a female Mockingbird with whom to build a nest.

I remember one night last spring, going to bed past 1 a.m. Suddenly, I heard the most beautiful song outside my bedroom window. “A bird singing at this hour?” I thought. “That’s kind of strange & spooky!” But then I remembered about the Mockingbird & opened up my window. The beautiful song filled my room, and I then thought of the following idea.

In life, we don’t always get what we want immediately; sometimes, there is a “delay” in getting what we hope for. We’re like those unmated birds, waiting, waiting. Waiting & hoping for it to be our turn.

However, our job is to try to be like that Mockingbird and, & within that waiting period, find a reason to sing. If we can dig deep, & find a reason to raise our voices in song, that is real, true greatness!