Im wunderschönen Monat Mai,
Als alle Knospen sprangen,
Da ist in meinem Herzen
Die Liebe aufgegangen.

Im wunderschönen Monat Mai,
Als alle Vögel sangen,
Da hab ich ihr gestanden
Mein Sehnen und Verlangen.

[In the lovely month of May,
When all the buds were blooming,
That is when in my heart
Love welled up.

In the lovely month of May,
When all the birds were singing,
That is when I confessed to her
My yearning and desire.]
– Im wunderschönen Monat Mai, Heinrich Heine (trans. R.C. Ahlstrom)

May will soon be behind us, and the spring will soon make way for the summer. As the season draws to a close, I am reminded that there are so few true constancies in life. One is the passage of time. Every passing moment is gone, never to be felt, seen, touched again, reduced to the memory of those who experienced it. And though we remember, we can never go back.

Though spring is a time of rebirth and renewal, it is also a reminder that as we move forward into a new season, new year, new life, we also leave behind something that can never be felt in exactly the same way ever again. Though we experience the cycle of the changing of the seasons every year of our lives, never will we see the exact blossoming flower or spring rain again. Live every moment and cherish the memory, for with every new beginning comes an end.