Crocus and Hope
Crocus spp.
For those of us who live through winter each year, signs of spring are happy events. Crocuses, the tiny cup-shaped flowers that appear as winter is waning, are messengers of better days ahead. The flowers come in a range of happy, bright colors. Pushing up from the ground, often through a blanket of snow, they seem to say, “Enough already!”
Crocuses are perennials and will continue to create new plants and grow each year. They can be sown right in the lawn because the flowers will be gone before it is time to mow. With just a little effort to get them in the ground, your yard can have an ongoing sign of spring hopefulness.
The energetic correspondence for crocuses is hope. They pop up at just the right time to remind us that spring will eventually arrive. Denver, Colorado, where I live, can have snow on the ground in May—hopeful reminders are necessary! Crocuses are well-suited to carry the energy of hope in the garden. The leaves have a waxy coating that allows them to withstand the snow. They also stay low to the ground, so bitter winds are less likely to take them out.
In the wellness workshops I facilitate, we often talk about the importance of hope. It’s a vital component to health and well-being. Being hopeful strengthens our immune system and helps us find our way through difficult situations. However, hope can feel elusive. It can be challenging to find hope if we don’t have it. Some of us are wired to be more hopeful, but we can all learn to cultivate hope in a more intentional way.
In most cases, crocuses do not appear on their own. Someone planted them. Just like crocuses, human hopefulness may need some thought and planning. We can approach hope in that way, finding intentional ways to plant seeds of hope for ourselves and others.
One regular practice for me is to check in with websites and podcasts that inform me about the positive work happening on the planet. They don’t sugarcoat things. It’s not about pretending there aren’t challenges, but rather tuning in to the way people are coming together to meet challenges.
Crocuses emerge in the world with a protective coating and hunker down low to the ground. Think about how to apply those concepts in your own attempts to hold on to hope. Hunkering down can be about knowing your circle of influence and staying focused on that, rather than thinking about the entire world. You can also nurture your protective coating by taking care of yourself by getting enough sleep and reducing stress, for example. Those small steps alone can change your view of the world and lift your feelings of hopefulness.
As you turn a mindful focus toward hope, examine how others hold hope. Learn and draw inspiration from their examples. For example, I regularly read biographies of people who have made it through difficult situations; understanding how they stayed hopeful and motivated provides me with concepts I can use in my own life.
Morning Attunement Questions
• What connections do I have with crocuses and hope?
• Where else in the green world or in my life do I observe hope?
• What does this correspondence feel like?
• How can I describe this energetic attribute of hope in words or pictures?
• Where does this correspondence of hope resonate most strongly in or around my body or in my life?
Daily Integration Questions
• In what ways is the world reflecting crocuses or hope back to me?
• What nuances and shades of meaning do I notice about crocuses and hope?
Evening Reflection Questions
• Where and how did I experience crocuses or hope today?
• How did I embrace hope today?
• What insights do I have about crocuses or hope?
• What wisdom does the crocus’s correspondence of hope bring to my life?