Seasons of Life

A few weeks ago, a customer came into the store and was asking for our own field cucumbers. The farmer's wife was nearby and so she answered, "we don't have them anymore, they've been done for a few weeks now. We only have the english cucumber." 

"But the field cucumber is so much better!" 

"Well, it has had it's season."

As I stood at the cash listening, this short yet profound response has struck a chord in me that has been ringing ever since. I am currently sitting at my dining table, in the house I've newly settled into in the middle of Aurora, ON. The past few weeks have involved playing tetris trying to pack the car, many trips up and down stairs, spontaneous furniture shopping, and already hosting our first birthday party and overnight guests. 

I had been praying that God would give me a thankful heart for the incredible season I've had in Guelph, that I would enjoy what I had left, and with contentment move onto the next chapter. And He has answered! I had been a bit nervous about being between two cities, and have planned to have my weekends in Guelph at the restaurant, and my weekdays in Aurora. But even before heading back to Guelph last weekend, I suddenly had no desire to return. Not that I didn't like it there or anything but I was very much content where I now am. I didn't feel this sense of being torn or pulled in two directions. Last weekend, I finished my tutoring job in Elora and wrapped up my time at the farm as well. 

But I still held on to my restaurant job at Nahathai's Kitchen. The people, the food, the benefits - I couldn't leave that! I considered if I would try to continue on to the end of the year, perhaps dropping it down to two weekends a month. Yet again, on my drive home this past Saturday, these great things no longer had the same hold on me as they once did. I also realized that I didn't want to be making this 75 min drive, one way, every weekend anymore. So yesterday, I put in my notice and will be closing that chapter at the end of the month. 

Everything, like that field cucumber, has its season. We are so accustomed to having tropical fruits and all sorts of produce at the grocery store year round, but we all know that something is infinitely better when it is in season. Seasons come and seasons go, yet we so often try to hang on to what we once had. I saw and experienced it so clearly as I was double-dipping between cities - living in one, on the phone with the other. It is like trying to read both sides of a page at the same time. It is like being a lover of orange juice and milk but drinking both at the same time. It is difficult to enjoy something to its fullest if you are constantly divided. 

Consider the current change in season as we enter the autumn months; so many of us will adamantly resist sweater weather, or wearing plaid, because we want to hold onto the summer that so quickly disappeared. I think it can speak to our desire to be in control, to play God, to determine what changes when, yet God sometimes doesn't let us play that game. 

Even as I look ahead, I praise God for his abundant provisions already! An interview with the York Region District School Board on Saturday, a potential position as a Starbucks barista, and other opportunities in the works. In addition, I can't wait for this new chapter at this new house with my new housemates, knowing full well that this season could very likely a short one before things change again. 

So, enjoy the sweetness of each season that the Lord gives, no matter how long or how short, even if it might be bitter or sour sometimes. And when it falls out of season, be thankful for what it was, and rejoice knowing that something new will be coming into season soon. 

There is a time for everything, a season for every activity under the heavens.

ECCLESIASTES 3:1