April Loves Blooms
Posted by Monika Meulman on
Just like the gentle soft petals of a tulip unfolding.
April is for Love
April is for Unfurling
April is for Blooming:
like the spring flowers that greet you with their eager faces along the path on your daily walk.
This is the month when nature unfolds one soft petal at a time. I invite you to allow your heart to open in much the same way a flower grows and offers itself up to spring.
Did you know that a petal is 'one of the modified often brightly coloured leaves of the corolla of a flower'? To open up to yourself, to open your heart up to life, to LOVE, to opportunities takes courage. Give yourself the permission to slowly open up, unfurl like the fronds of a fresh forest fern, or the unwrap each sepal and petal of your heart like a fresh, emboldened tulip. Step out into spring with the colours of the spring gardens in your heart. This naturally puts a smile on your face. You'll see.
This is the time of year we take in a breath of fresh spring air. Our noses are delighted with vibrant aromas, our eyes take in bright colours emerging in our gardens and a scurry of activity is underfoot. Take that as a sign! It is time to invite this unfolding and growth in your life. Start with saturating your senses. Then, flow the over abundance of spring joy into your heart. Let it gently permeate in your personal life, and trickle into your work, permeate your thoughts, sparking new opportunities.
Take a cue from nature and watch a simple, lemon yellow daffodil rise up to greet the sky and open up its petals like a ray of sunshine. Or spend some time with a budding apple tree and observe the round condensed buds unfurl and greet the spring warming air.
We have much to learn from nature, our guide.
Love is like the spring blooms. It is in us to grow and share. Love is a natural condition of our humanity. Ode to spring is alas an Ode to love of mankind.
Maybe you need some inspiration...
Here are my favourite spring blooms, sure to bring joy and warmth into your heart (to get you started!)
Bulbs such as Hyacinths are easy to find at almost every corner store this month. Their aroma is fresh, floral, green with a hint of seductive jasmine.
Did you know that some of the aromatic chemistry, benzyl acetate, is the same, very much prized aroma, as in jasmine flowers? The Perfume Society describes the developing aroma as "In tight bud, the scent's lightly, almost ethereally floral; as it opens, the scent becomes pumpingly potent and intoxicating (though still with that damp greenness)".
On the heels of April blooms, arrives my favourite spring floral: the magnolia. Often described as fresh and lush with a hint of lemon.
Did you know that the magnolia is believed to have appeared long before the bees did? (Yes, the beetles were the pollinators). With her strong aroma, large blooms and her 80 meter growth (in some species), she is as majestic to view as she is to inspire. To open up to life fully, like a soft cream and pink magnolia in full bloom, is the ultimate act of joy. Wouldn't you agree?
Follow the way of the flowers this spring.
It is after all a healthy, natural, supportive way to open your heart up to new opportunities. Watch your love grow, just by taking in the sights of your world. As you set out on walk in the park, or head over to the local grocery, ask yourself: can I feel my heart gently unfurling to this day? to this season? Is the experience familiar to you? Or is it something foreign or unusual?
If you need a helping hand opening up to love and to this vibrant season, ask yourself: What do I need in terms of nourishment and support to feel safe as I grow?
In this rising energy, warmth and stronger sun rays, maybe spending a few more minutes on a warm park bench will fuel you and support you. Maybe some Tai Chi or Chi Gong in the park will get your energy flowing freely. It is a good time of year to choose a change of pace, invite a new friendship, or try out something completely new. It is good for your heart and spirit.
May the radiant sunshine, bright florals of spring and the chipper chirps of nesting birds bring you an abundance of joy and love. This is, after-all, the way of mother nature.
Life begins the day you start a garden.
– Chinese proverb