TRANSITIONS

By Deborah S. Kaufman, LCSW

When in April the sweet showers fall
That pierce March’s drought to the root and all
And bathed every vein in liquor that has power
To generate therein and sire the flower
When Zephyr also has with his sweet breath
Filled again, in every holt and heath,
The tender shoots and leaves, and the young sun
His half-course in the sign of the Ram has run,
And many little birds make melody
That sleep all through the night with open eye
(So Nature pricks them on to ramp and rage)
Then folk do long to go on pilgrimage,
And palmers to go seeking out strange strands
To distant shrines well known in distant lands.

(Modern translation of Chaucer’s Prologue to The Canterbury Tales)

With the coming of spring, the time of rebirth and renewal, we can
reflect on the changes we experience in our lives here in Southwest
Florida. And we do not even need to wait until April to experience the
mild weather and the sired flowers. For those of us who have relocated
from the more northern parts of the country, this change is not nearly
as dramatic in terms of weather and foliage as what we experienced
before moving here. Emotionally, the change of moving can be very
dramatic. Like any pilgrimage, we are filled with hope and anticipation
and also fear about the unknown. For many women, this transition
raises questions about forming new relationships, finding work,
establishing a new home with and for their families and fitting in to a
new community.

It has been over 10 years since I transferred my psychotherapy
practice from New York to Florida and many of the people who seek
my assistance have relocated from another part of the country too. So
it is not surprising that a significant part of my work has been to help
people explore the issues that arise with the change of relocating,
changing jobs and careers, changing relationships, changing one’s
place in the world. I help people to access their inner strength, their
connection to inner wisdom and to take the power that is born from
such strength and wisdom out into the world to reestablish them in a
new place whether literally, figuratively or both.

Revised from an article printed in the North Port Sun Herald February 2005.