When I was a young kid each spring I loved to present this riddle, “April showers bring May flowers, but what do May flowers bring?” And then I would gleefully exclaim, “Pilgrims!” I should have known then I was going to become an American politics professor, but it would be many years later before that became a reality. Each May, I am filled with a sense of excitement for the good weather ahead, a sense of exhaustion as the semester and academic school year come to a close, and slight anxiety knowing that the summer will come and go in the blink of an eye.
May also seems to be a time of transition for so many people. As we look at trees budding this year, it seems like so many friends and colleagues are surrounded by loss. The passing of friends, grandparents, and even parents has reminded me that the cycle of life is always moving around us. Just as the trees shed their leaves and somehow begin anew in spring, or birds who flew far south begin to return, the cycle of nature is always around us. Babies are being born, and loved ones are passing on. As I get older, I realize the cycle of nature, whether outside of my window or in my personal life, is something that keeps moving, no matter how much I want time to stand still.
I always love to use the emergence of spring as a time to reset. As we begin to come out of our winter cocoons, I hope we can temporarily block out the madness of the world and let nature take hold of our focus, even if only for a few minutes. I, for one, am going to spend more time going to the farmers market, sitting in the sun, taking the subway less and trying to walk the streets of New York a bit more, playing a little croquet with friends, and spending time in one of the many parks in NYC with my binoculars observing my little avian friends.
Related: Spring has sprung
So, how are you going to maximize your May?
I know for some, the school year is winding down, and summer preparations are on the minds of many parents. For others, the beginning of spring means a new opportunity to think about changes in their professional or personal lives. No matter how to choose to plan for the month of May, it is imperative we spend a little time in nature to appreciate the newness of our environment. Since May is Mental Health Awareness Month, we must prioritize our mental health and how we treat ourselves. So, let’s practice healthy behavioral habits that we can pass along to others.
Christina Greer, Ph.D., is an associate professor at Fordham University; author of book “How to Build a Democracy: From Fannie Lou Hamer and Barbara Jordan to Stacey Abrams” and “Black Ethnics: Race, Immigration, and the Pursuit of the American Dream” and is co-host of the podcast FAQ-NYC.