Savoring Autumn
Hello Dear Ones!
Thursdays are my writing days, and yesterday was Rosh Hashanah. School was closed, and my son was home with me. There was no writing. Instead there was big living.
What I mean is, we had a day full of just flowing with whatever felt right, and ended up spending the entire afternoon working outside together. We pulled down the cucumber and bean trellises, snipped off the vines, rolled up the trellises, stowed the stakes in the barn... and then gently took the twine that held the trellises together and wound them into neat rolls for next year. The old plants were carried off to the compost, to return to the earth. The sun was bright, autumn leaves stood joyfully against the blue sky. As we worked, hands busy, we talked all about life. My son had lots of questions, and I loved the opportunity to take my time and answer them well. There was no hurrying, no long To-Do list. There was this one moment, this one thing to do with our hands and hearts, and most importantly there was being together.
I've been thinking and feeling a lot about Autumn. Fighting against it, and the promise of winter, and then reveling in it;. When I stop to just be with what is actually happening outside, everything gets kind of magical. I slow down. I notice beauty. I hear hawks calling, wind rustling. I feel the warmth on my face. And, astonished, I realize that I am savoring Autumn.
This calls to mind one of the moments I wrote about this past summer- when I just finally settled into the bliss of the present summertime moment. How everything becomes wonderful when we simply settle into what truly is, and use our senses to experience it.
I feel like there is always inner work to do, made more available in the darker/colder months. And there is always the beckoning to simply orient our senses to the real-live life happening around us in present time.
I wrote about the inner work of autumn and winter a few years ago. Correction: I write about it every year, but there is a piece I wrote in 2021 that seems so useful now. I'll share it with you here:
Going Inward:
As the seasons change, shifting from summer to autumn, we too experience a shift in all aspects of our being. Spring and Summer are great big expansive times. Big movement, big ideas, big projects, big adventures.
In contrast, Autumn and Winter are times of contraction. For us, this means folding inward. The very motion of inward folding can feel so edgy, so uncomfortable…The shift from expansion to contraction is almost a heroic shift. Take notice of how this feels in your body and how it shows up in your life. These two seasons are a time to deeply look inward. To take notice. To rest.
These are the times to take stock of your life. What is working? What isn’t? What are your dreams and intentions for your next time of expansion (next spring and summer)? What are your dreams and intentions for your life? What kind of tending, simplifying, repairing and renewal are required in order to live in integrity (meaning all of your parts are integrated into one whole authentic you)?
I invite you to really use this Autumn (and Winter) time. Deepen your connection to your wise inner self. What does she want you to know? What are the changes, the course corrections, and also the daring new leaps and risks you are willing to take, in order to live the life of your greatest imagining?
And, as ever, can you slow down right now as you read this? And later, as you step out into the beautiful land around you, can you become slow and open? What do you smell? What do you hear? What do you feel in your body as it engages with the space around you? Can you glimpse beauty?.... and then.... can you feel the joyful magic of being deeply present, senses open, truly here now?
In deep gratitude for everything in this sweet life,
Rebecca
* Disclaimer: This likely goes without saying, but I'll say it anyway: Everything I write is for educational purposes only. Nothing I write or share can be deemed diagnostic or medical advice. Nothing I write or share can replace your own healthcare providers or your own internal knowing and wisdom. Period. Please seek tailored medical care and advice via your skilled healthcare team whenever you need it.
