Emphasizing The Whoosh; a March Perspective

Good afternoon, Vocal Media community and welcome to my first Monday huddle of March! Sorry I missed you last week but I couldn't capture my intended photographs to my liking which are relevant to my story. As an avid birder, I often capture their flight patterns on film, but for this particular prompt, the whoosh, I found my task a bit tricky, especially with the speed of the implied word.

Merriam-Webster defines whoosh as a swift or explosive rush; also, the sound created by the rush.

Think: cars, motorcycles, trains 🚕🏍🚞

Think: crashing waves, waterfalls 🏄‍♀️

Think, think, think: birds rushing by and wind 🐦🌪

Since March is notorious for its winds, and I love birds, the notion of whoosh seems appropriate for my latest Monday huddle.

Admittedly, patience is not always my strongest virtue, especially when super focused on achieving a goal. The creator in me spent many a morning just waiting for an opportunity to photograph birds racing by. Often, camera-ready meant only me as the birds simply glided, floated in the sky or a v-flight pattern progressed against a backdrop, frame by frame, indicating a more relaxed filming pace.

Alternatively, I missed many a captured moment as either my fingers couldn't tap fast enough or the birds were much wiser, whizzing by when I decided to give my filming fingers a break.

In a whoosh, I missed the moment, time and time again.

But determination kept me coming back for more until ultimately, I achieved my goal.

A March perspective

March is a month that often goes unnoticed in the hustle and bustle of transitioning seasons, yet it holds deep symbolic and magical significance. As the bridge between the icy introspection of winter and the vibrant rebirth of spring, March beckons us to awaken from our slumber and embrace transformation.

The snippet above comes from an online blog that captured my attention while researching the spiritual meaning of March. Specifically, the first sentence drew me in, as the author notes how the month often goes unnoticed in the hustle and bustle ( activity and noise) of seasons transitioning.

Winter's harsh cold weather is shifting to long-awaited Spring's friendlier warmer temperatures, and for many of us, the change can't come fast enough.

Recently, the clocks went forward, springing us into action even quicker. Daylight lasts longer, barren gardens are awaiting toiled soil, and little creatures scurry in the early hours while all else lays hush.

While March symbolizes rebirth and transition, it also signifies balance.

Balance, now that's a word humans often grapple with.

A balanced life reflects energy evenly distributed sustaining emotional, mental, physical, and spiritual wellness.

Is it always easy?

NO

As some of you already know, I am currently out of work with a knee injury awaiting the results of this morning's MRI which I won't get until next week at my follow-up appointment. I am in constant pain that is increasing and while I am eager to change careers, my absence from being at work, and earning a paycheck is really getting to me.

Balance for me right now means walking the path to healing in slow motion not rushing, not getting super excited, worked up, or over-aggravated by a situation I cannot change.

There is no whoosh in my equation.

March and wind have heavily been on my mind, almost as much as the birds I, oh, so love to watch from my balcony.

And photography, a newfound joy I began last year, keeps me centered as I snap pictures of nature scenes and all her many blessings. I have no fancy camera; in fact, I take all of my shots with my phone. But I practice and practice some more, making final edits, sometimes after snapping a hundred pictures or more.

If I turn the whoosh inside out and upside down, I get a sense of stillness likened to a breath of fresh air, and a calm meditative pose I can live with.

This, dear readers, is the gift I wish for you. I wish it because I cannot give it. You must do the work. You must find the center, the balance, the peaceful inner core in a life that often insists on racing by.

But this is not life as it should be, only a human perception.

True, the wind will always be the wind, and a bird will always be a bird, and we can never truly experience existence from either angle, but trust, without a doubt that both the wind and the bird know a thing or two about achieving balance.

Why did I emphasize the whoosh?

So you might look at life with a new perspective and pause Ol' March Winds for a time of hush.

Enjoy a standstill or slower time; you need not always rush

Thank you for reading and again my apologies for being late, not only a week behind but this would-be Monday morning read is now publishing in the afternoon.

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