PROVIDENCE – Yin and yang are a constant force; darkness and light are always linked together. Even though we know that one is drawn to the other, it is a blessing when darkness is replaced with light, as the cold, long winter night is replaced with days of increasing life, awareness and beginnings.

When the blossoms begin to show, it is a call for celebration.

When rain brings little green sprouts out of the ground, it is time for dance.

Winter brings sleep, resilience, and a sense of slow but steady power and strength, a time to hibernate, embraced by the strong-willed among us.

But even the most strong-willed laugh and smile as they watch the sun come up earlier and earlier, as the days expand and grow along with the rest of existence.

Embracing life
We are beings full of life; life embraces us as we embrace her.

When fawns roam the earth once again, we are filled with a sense of peace and a renewal of love.

As cultures have expanded and morphed over time, we have kept the celebrations that mark the coming of spring – from paganism with Ostara, the spring equinox where light and darkness have reached a balance, with light beginning to dominate, to Marzanna in Poland, with decorated dolls tossed into water, to the festival of scrambled eggs in Bosnia, and to Hanami in Japan, where people celebrate by hosting parties under blossoming trees.

The coming of spring is common chord, recognized by all peoples, no matter the religion or race, as a time for celebration, festivals and parties – and as a time to give thanks to the earth that is home to all of us. It reunites us to our mother and our spirits.

So what will you do to celebrate? Will you plant a tree or maybe aid a bee? Will you smile with friends and share your generosity and empathy, or maybe make a special meal?

Whatever it shall be, let the birth of spring give you new light and new peace within you.

Chloe Moers, a high school student at the Met School in Providence, is a frequent contributor to ConvergenceRI.