Seasons

For everything there is a season, a time for every activity under heaven. Ecclesiastes 3:1.

When we hear about seasons we automatically think about the four seasons that make up a year or a cycle– Spring, Summer, Autumn, Winter.  Each of these seasons has its own peculiarities, things we automatically associate with it- cold with winter, freshness with spring, etc.

It occurred to me that seasons in the life of a human being are analogous to the seasons of the year.  And as with the seasons of the year, they occur in cycles.  I imagine that there could be an infinite number of cycles but I identified three

1)    Chronological cycle

The period from when you’re born till late teenage or early twenties is the spring of your life, the planting season.  Your parents invest in educating you and otherwise training you for life. 

From about mid-twenties to mid-forties it’s summer, you blossom and bear fruit.  Your education pays off, you get the great job and great salary, you get married, have kids, travel the world.

From about mid-forties to late sixties it’s autumn.  Your health may start to decline, you get grandchildren, things generally slow down from the frenzy of the summer years.

Well, when you die its winter for sure

2)    Incidental cycle

We’re thrown into different seasons by the events happening in our life.  When something new is happening in our lives, its spring.  You just got married, you just had a baby, you just started a new business.

When you get the promotion, watch your child graduate, get the business award, its summer.

Sudden ill-health or death in the family would plunge you into autumn.  Should the illness result in death, autumn becomes winter.  The failure or loss of a business, foreclosure of a home, etc, plunge you into winter.

3)    Self-inflicted cycle

Sometimes we take certain decisions that force us into a particular season.  In fact, every major decision that we take in our lives force us into a certain season.  Sometimes it just accelerates or decelerates things a bit, but sometimes it catapults us straight through several seasons. Deciding to start a family, quit your job, rob a bank, etc. will force you into a season, good or bad.

The important thing to remember is that seasons are always cyclical. So even though winter may appear a little longer than usual right now, spring will show up at some point; and even though you’re enjoying a long sultry summer right now, autumn will come knocking eventually. 

Hal Borland said: no winter lasts forever, no spring skips its turn, and

William Blake teaches us to learn at seed time, teach at harvest, and in winter enjoy.