The Gift of Spring: Renewal, Light and A Shift in Mood

6 min read

The GIF Version of Morning

GIF by @axemeagain via GIPHY

It’s a new day. You’re waking up and getting ready to leave the house. At some point you check your phone… someone has sent you a “Morning” GIF.

Blue skies. A smiley-faced yellow sun. A perfect cup of coffee with cartoon steam floating up from it. Sparkles. An exaggerated wink.

It’s cringey and cute at the same time.

If only a winter morning in the UK really arrived like that. For those of you living in a warmer climate (lucky you), winter mornings in the Northern Hemisphere aren’t like that at all.

The Reality of a cold Winter Morning

Let me paint the picture. It’s Monday and your alarm goes off. Time to go to work, school, anywhere. You want to get up, but something feels off… it’s completely dark. Horror-movie dark. The kind of dark where the only creatures happy about it are foxes and owls.

You peel back the duvet and silently pray the room is warm. If you left the heating on, you’re brave. In this economy? Questionable. So now you’re fully aware of just how cold it really is.

You know you need to turn the light on. But you delay it. Because when you’ve been in pitch-black darkness and suddenly flick a switch, it stings your eyes. It shocks you.

Image source: Adobe Express

Every cell in your body says, “No. We are not doing this.”

And yet there you are. Brushing your teeth like a hero.

Welcome to winter mornings.

You step outside and realise you actually had it good indoors. On the streets, people are in survival mode. Moving fast. Heads down. No eye contact. Just a quiet shuffle toward the next destination. Even the air feels aggressive.

When 4:00pm Feels Like Midnight

You go through your day, you’re surviving. It’s all working out well… and then not long after lunch, somehow you’re switching the lights back on. Surely it’s too early for that? It’s only 4:00pm.

A typically dark winter evening. Image source: Adobe Express

It feels wrong. Like the precursor to a strange twist in a film (cue eerie music playing while you turn on the light in the middle of the afternoon).

Welcome to winter evenings.

By 4:00pm, we’re back in complete darkness. The days — and months — feel like one long night shift. A cold one.

I understand that some people love winter. But I know they don’t love icy 50mph winds, rain sneaking under umbrellas and flipping them inside out. No one’s trying to “vibe” on a damp bench in November.

Days become weeks, become months, and you start to wonder if this fridge-freezer life is permanent.

And just when you think you can’t take it anymore…

And Then Something Shifts…

Spring brings a brighter energy to the streets. Image source: Adobe Express

…Spring.

The days stretch a little longer. Mornings stop feeling like you’re mentally preparing for a Wim Hof cold plunge (if you know, you know). You start noticing colour again. It’s no longer Antarctic.

You see it first in people. Someone gives you a small smile on the pavement. Maybe even a “morning.” People aren’t rushing quite as hard. They linger half a second longer.

Bikes reappear. Roller skaters and skateboarders return. Someone’s playing the guitar at the station and it doesn’t feel ironic. The same street feels different simply because there’s sound and light again. It reminds you the city is alive, not just functional.

In many cultures, Spring represents renewal and rebirth. I wouldn’t go as far as saying I personally feel “reborn,” but I can see and feel the quiet renewal that takes place.

Artwork by Natasha Awuku. Part of a new print collection.

There’s more sunlight, which naturally helps boost serotonin — the chemical that supports feelings of calm and happiness. Things feel lighter. More possible. Mornings edge a little closer to that GIF.

And then there are the flowers. That’s how I really know Spring has arrived. Those first daffodils.

You’re walking somewhere, distracted, probably thinking about something else — and then you see them. Colour where there was none. After months of grey, it almost feels surreal. They interrupt the grey. They soften the hard edges. They remind us that life doesn’t disappear — it waits.

Even in the middle of the city, nature is patient. It’s just waiting for the right moment to come back.

After Winter, Spring isn’t just a season.

It’s a gift.

“The City Awakens” — Print Collection Launching 12 April 2026

For first access and a little note from me, join Natasha’s Notes.