It was cold, snowy and windy here in Denver today. It was so windy that when I was walking my dog this morning my eyes were watering. It may come as no surprise to you that this is in fact not my favorite kind of weather. This is doubly true when the calendar shows it’s the middle of March, and the weather is acting as if it’s January.

I moved to Colorado in 2000, so the weather and seasonal patterns here aren’t foreign to me. But I still couldn’t help but walk around with a scowl on my face today thinking, “It’s supposed to be spring!”. Like it or not, this is Colorado’s version of spring.

This feeling is very familiar to me, like an internal itch that can’t be located, let alone scratched. It’s the feeling of wanting things to be different than they are, and it’s a sensation that creates so much suffering for so many of us.

The truth is, sometimes our lives don’t reflect back to us what we’re desiring or dreaming about, and this incongruity can be painful, frustrating, and at the root of so much suffering in our lives. My body and mind may be screaming for spring to emerge (and for the snow to go far, far away!), but if the idea of spring that I have in mind doesn’t arrive for another 2 months, it’s going to be a very long 8 weeks.

Since I feel this inner angst in a particularly strong way every spring, I’ll share with you what I’ve learned about it over the years, and how what I’ve learned can be applied to so many areas of my life.

1)     Be with what is. I allow myself to feel the emotions of discontent and the desire for something new because it is a powerful driver of my behavior. One of my mentors recently told me that motivation comes from moving away from things, as well as moving towards things. We begin change by initially moving away from what we no longer want. But if we want to sustain that change we have to discover what new thing we’re moving towards, and allow that thing to pull us toward it.

2)     Look for signs that what I’m desiring is on its way. The truth is that it is showing up even if it’s not the most dominant thing in my life. Change is happening, it’s just that it’s not instantaneous. And if it did magically appear, would that freak me out? Would I be ready for it? Do I actually require more time to adjust and align with my desires so that when they do arrive I am ready to fully receive them?

3)     I embrace my desires, knowing that they are my truth. Then I take the time to deliberately feel what it will be like when I am experiencing and enjoying the realization of them. I used to get very insecure when my desires didn’t magically and immediately manifest. I’d think all kinds of unhelpful thoughts, like “There’s something wrong with me.”; “Who am I to want that? Do that? Have that?”; “I didn’t really need it anyway. It’s okay that it’s not here. I just won’t think about it anymore.” This was how I assured myself that “it just wasn’t meant to be”.

What I’ve learned is that if I really want something, the fastest way to having that thing (or experience, or feeling or…) is to imagine myself already having it, and who I am when I have it. If I continue to tell myself that I can’t really have what I want, I manifest the lack of it. When I tell myself that it is already here, it’s exactly what I want, I am so grateful that it has arrived with such grace and ease, and that I am the perfect person to experience this because I have aligned myself internally and I know I am worthy of this experience…it is so.

Whether it’s Spring Fever, or a desire for a cute (but spendy) pair of shoes, a dream of taking a fun trip (to Fiji!), a fierce desire to experience a heart-expanding-mind-blowing connection with someone, or even to step into the next level of your business or your role as a parent… there is a period of change and transition that can feel like it’s taking for-ev-er! But if it is your true desire, if you are taking small but daily steps to get there, and if you are aligning your insides to match your outsides, it will happen at the most divinely inspired and perfect time.

Just know that when you are internally ready and know that you are worthy and that it is a given that it will happen, it will. As Henry Ford once said, “If you think you can do a thing or think you can’t, you’re right.” I’ve placed my faith and trust in my knowing that spring is imminent, and that it won’t always be winter. And in the meantime, I’ll be preparing, both internally and externally, to relish every moment of spring when she arrives.