May Spring Find Us

The Centre for Health Innovation|March 27, 2026

By Lisa Paterson, Yoga Therapist, Movement & Meditation Teacher, Retired Psychotherapist.

An Early Spring Practice

The arrival of Spring doesn't guarantee Spring feelings, nor warm sunny weather! The arrival of Spring doesn't mean that you automatically feel energized or hopeful. But it might be in contemplation of the Spring that some hope - or some curiosity - appears. Here's a little practice to try:

Instead of insisting on a certain emotion or experience that we think we ought to be feeling with the arrival of Spring, what if we ask ourselves some questions, to encourage a gentle turning towards the season. You can do this sitting at home, or going out on a walk, or lying down with your eyes closed, or writing in a journal:

☯︎ What signs of Spring are evident around me?

☯︎ What feels wintery, frozen - inside me, or outside? Can I try to notice this with a gentle curiosity, without any insistence that it change?

☯︎ What is thawing - inside me, or outside in the world?

☯︎ What signs of life are here - in this body, in this neighbourhood?

After you've spent some time in reflection with one or more of these questions, you might want to wash your hands slowly in warm water, offering yourself this blessing: "May Spring Find Me".

Spring arrives in fits and starts, with mud and rain and cloud and earth. Spring will sometimes feel warm and inviting, and at other times cold and uninspiring. Spring does not require your optimism or your permission - the flowers will eventually grow and the sun will warm us, no matter how we're feeling in this moment.

For me, this is a very welcome truth - that I don't have to be thinking or feeling a certain way for the spring to come. Just like I don't have to feel "creative" to start writing, I don't have to feel optimistic or hopeful or energized at the start of the Spring season. No "positive" emotions required. Also: We don't have to leap into this season! We can shuffle, or crawl, or leap, or saunter... please, let's widen the doors. In fact, let's turn towards what is already here, without forcing ourselves to get anywhere. Let's notice what creative processes are already present, and what is shifting and percolating in the very earth underneath our feet.

May Spring find us 🩶

Sending so much love and courage for these days.

xoxo

🌱 Special Spring Class in the Slow Movement & Meditation Library 🌱

I have added a 60-minute Spring Gentle Yoga class to the Slow Movement & Meditation Library. This class might be just the way to acknowledge the Spring season that is upon us - especially for anyone who is still feeling wintery, sluggish, or like hope is elusive. It includes a choice-based slow and gentle movement practice with a Spring theme, and a guided rest with a reading from Kate Bowler.

This class gives you a gentle way to move into the Spring season, without any insistence on a particular mindset or feeling state - so however you are feeling/doing is allowed and honoured. Go here to purchase a 3 or 6-month Library membership, and then type spring into the Library search bar to practise with this special seasonal class.

Author: Lisa Paterson Yoga Therapist, Movement & Meditation Teacher, Retired Psychotherapist.

Lisa Paterson, M.Ed., C-IAYT, (she/her), is a yoga therapist, a meditation teacher, and a writer. Lisa works with folks from all walks of life who are living with chronic conditions, and also works with health professionals who are recuperating from or trying to avoid burnout. She has a master's degree in Counselling Psychology from McGill University, 800+ hours of Yoga Therapy training from the School of Embodied Yoga Therapy, and 500+ hours of yoga teacher training from schools in New York City, Ottawa, and Montreal.