How to Stay Consistent When Things Feel Hard

I have a few friends who live in California that always get offended when I say I wouldn’t want to live somewhere without seasons.

Which is a little ironic, because I hate the extremes.

I hate the really hot, humid days (days with, as my dad says, “the air that you wear”).

I also hate when it gets so cold that the dogs don’t even want to go out because the ice on the ground hurts their little paws.

This past winter in Cleveland was especially rough, and there were definitely moments where I caught myself thinking,

“Why do I live somewhere like this?”

But then we recently had one of those random warm days.

The sun was out.

The air was fresh.

I was out on a walk with the dogs and just felt…better.

And I had this thought:

“Oh…I’m not depressed. I just needed sunshine.”

Now, yes, seasonal depression is a real thing. I’m not dismissing that.

But for me, it was a really powerful reminder of something bigger:

Nothing is permanent.

Not the hard seasons.

And not the easy ones either.

And that’s exactly why I’ve come to appreciate living in a place where I get to experience all four seasons.

Because it’s a built-in reminder that you will see the other side.

Winter turns into spring.

Things that feel heavy now won’t always feel this way.

And at the same time…

Spring doesn’t last forever either.

The good seasons aren’t permanent.

And this matters so much when it comes to how we approach change.

Because a lot of the messaging out there tells you:

You should be able to do this without it ever feeling hard.

You should be able to lose weight without giving anything up.

You should be able to build habits that always feel good.

But that’s not how anything in life works.

You don’t get spring without winter.

Just like you don’t get growth without discomfort.

And when you expect things to feel easy all the time…

You assume something is wrong the moment they don’t feel that way.

You think:

“This isn’t working.”

“It shouldn’t be so hard.”

“I better try something different.”

But what if it being hard isn’t a sign that something is wrong…

But instead a reflection of the season you’re in?

And what if, instead of trying to rush out of it…

You trusted that it won’t last forever?

Because if you knew, really knew, that this season would pass…

You’d probably relate to it very differently.

Less urgency.

More commitment to the process.

Less panic.

More trust in your ability to persevere.

And on the flip side…

If things are going well for you right now,

Are you fully letting yourself experience that?

Or are you taking it for granted?

Because winter will come again.

There will be future struggles, pain, and loss.

That awareness isn’t meant to create fear.

It’s meant to deepen appreciation.

So here’s what I want you to think about today:

What season are you in right now?

And how would you show up differently if you knew it won’t last forever?