Finding Spring

Finding Spring – when you see no sign of it

I’ll never forget spring 2010.

Every year, as a family, we hold a spring celebration on 1 September. The spring of 2010 posed a huge problem, there were no signs of spring anywhere. Not a flower bloomed and not a new shoot showed.

How does one celebrate something that does not exist? Well spring of 2010 found us talking to the trees, telling them it was time to wake up now and we hung to the promise of what was to come. And oh the rejoicing when spring did find its way into our homes.

2011 has been entirely different in that our garden had been bursting with colour and life since August and so we felt our spring celebration to be a bit late but we still used the time to thank God for the beauty he chose to surround us with.

These two contrasting springs have spoken to me very deeply as a mother, wife and woman. At times life is hard, it’s dry we always seem to be fighting against the stream and we see no beauty in our daily chores or what we spend our days doing. Sometimes money is tight, relationships are strained, children seem impossible or work is all-consuming. At these times we are hardly likely to see spring bursting around us! I have however learned that at these times we need to look into these dry branches of our existence and whisper hope and expectation. Beneath every wintered tree lies a green branch busy storing energy and life so that at the perfect moment it not only gives out a little blush of green, no it burst forth in colour and life. So in these hard times we need to cling to the hope that lies below the surface.

In the same manner – other times in our lives are so filled with blessing, happiness and wellness that we are actually at the risk of not noticing or appreciating the spring surrounding us. It’s in these times that we need to ensure we don’t take the “little things” in life for granted, but to instead stop, smell the roses – literally – and give thanks for all our blessings.

So on a personal note from our dry winter f 2011 God has provided us with a wonderful new home, my husband has been offered an awesome job 5 minutes from our new house and we have been placed within a new church family. Out of the dry branches has sprung forth life and life abundantly

Celebrating Spring

Celebrating Spring

Written September 2011

As a new mom I remember reading Sally Clarkson’s book Mission of Motherhood. One of the family aspects that stood out for me was her thoughts on celebrations. We not talking about Christmas or Easter here but rather everyday celebrations.

Since then we have selected a handful of special days and created our own personal celebrations around it. When our children look back on their childhood it’s my hope that they will say, “Our family was special because we always celebrated…..”

One of our favourite celebrations is Spring. This has evolved over the years depending on where we have lived and how old the children have been but this is how it looks today. Mom gets up really early to start making scones for breakfast. Once everyone is up we trek out into the garden with baskets to collect flowers and leaves to decorate the table with. Then while the children decorate and set the table we finish getting the scones, fruit, yogurt and fruits raw oats ready to eat. We then all sit down to breakfast with soft music playing, sweet flower scents drifting from the table and candles burning. Breakfast begins with a prayer thanking God for spring, hope, life and all things beautiful.

This year we focused on the Bible verse Song of Songs 2: 11- 13 , “See! The winter is past;    the rains are over and gone.  Flowers appear on the earth;   the season of singing has come, the cooing of doves  is heard in our land.  The fig tree forms its early fruit;  the blossoming vines spread their fragrance. Arise, come, my darling; my beautiful one, come with me.”

So after breakfast the older children wrote out and illustrated the verse while the younger ones illustrated theirs (we cut out some butterfly wrapping paper too – just to add to the effect.) As we had moms group that morning we spent the time making flower arrangements with our friends. W aim to have a lovely supper too at the end of the day during which we all either recite or read a poem that speaks of spring, hope, or new life. The evening is ended by Daddy praying for us.

Update 2020 –

Spring Day is still a central part of our lives. 

Happy 1st of Spring ~ what a privilege to celebrate new life, love, hope and birth along with the rest of creation. As we drink tea, write spring poetry and begin our new phenology wheels – yup that’s a thing 😉 – we take a moment to pause and reflect. Spring day is about more than just the day but about living the winter, living the hard, raw, real all the while holding onto the hope that spring will soon usher in a new season of warmth, light and pure joy. As our lives here mirror an eternal story – celebrating Spring Day not only warms our heart and home but fills our souls too!

Welcome

A Family Feast would love to welcome you to our table. This journey through family, life, marriage, learning and growing together is something that entwines within each of us a story of grace, hope, dreams and faith.

What a privileged to journey with our children at home while they explore this beautiful – wide-eyed wonder world. Many years ago Charlotte Mason was introduced to us and since then she has become entwined within our DNA. Her practical philosophy blending with the outplaying of scriptures which under girth all of who we are and how we live. By practically applying her philosophy of education into our everyday existence we have been able to not only grasp a fully delight centered learning life style but we have also embraced beauty, excellence and a deep love for our saviour and all we’ve been called to as his ambassadors upon this earth.

We do hope that you enjoy joining us for this journey and learn as much as we have along the way.