Welcome to Autumn Learnings.
What this season can teach us about living gently.
So I've been thinking quite a lot about autumn recently.
It's because it's such a noticeable season.
There are those little changes happening almost every day.
The mornings are beginning to feel different.
The light is changing.
There is a coolness in the air that wasn't there a few weeks ago.
Leaves are beginning to turn from green to gold,
Copper and deep red,
And gradually the landscape starts to soften into a completely different rhythm.
And I really love that about autumn.
This year,
I found myself thinking about it as more than simply a beautiful season.
Because when we really pay attention to what's happening in nature,
Autumn has quite a lot to teach us about how we live.
About slowing down,
Change,
Relationships with rest and productivity and,
Of course,
About letting go.
Most importantly,
There is a learning that is about living a little more gently in our lives.
So I thought I'd share four of the things that autumn has been reminding me of.
These are just a few reflections that you might like to take into your own life and see what resonates with you.
So,
Firstly,
We don't have to keep growing all the time.
And I think this is one of the things I find most fascinating about our natural world.
He celebrates spring because everything begins to grow,
And summer because everything feels so lush,
Abundant,
And full.
And then autumn comes along and nature does something completely different.
It begins to draw inward.
So the trees aren't trying to produce more leaves.
The plants,
They aren't desperately trying to keep flowering.
And the natural world doesn't resist the change,
And decide that perhaps it ought to work a little harder to keep summer going.
Because there is a shift in energy.
And yet,
As human beings,
We can find that so difficult.
Sometimes we're so surrounded by messages encouraging us to do more,
Improve ourselves,
Achieve more,
Make better use of our time.
And even sometimes our rest can become something we feel we have to do well.
So,
I wonder whether we've forgotten that we are allowed to have seasons too.
And there will be those times when we have so much energy and ideas.
Those times when we want to create and explore and say yes to everything.
And there will be those other times when our energy is quieter.
When our body is asking us to slow down.
And that is when we need more rest.
More space.
And more time for ourselves.
I've certainly become much more aware of this in my own life.
Noticing my energy.
And just going with that flow.
Sometimes I still find myself thinking about what I should be doing rather than noticing what I actually need.
The wonderful thing about autumn is it reminds me that drawing inward is part of living.
So we don't have to blossom all of the time.
Sometimes conserving our energy is exactly what we need.
And the second reflection is about letting go.
And autumn is all about that.
It's probably one of the most familiar autumn messages.
Because the trees,
They release their leaves.
And so,
This is a good time to release whatever no longer serves us.
And there is truth in that.
But I've been thinking about it slightly differently.
Because when I've been watching the trees,
There hasn't really been a dramatic moment of letting go.
It's just one leaf falls,
Then another.
And some they stay for much longer than we expect.
Gust of wind comes along,
And a few more flutter to the ground.
So it's a gradual fall.
It's natural.
There's no deadline.
I really feel that that is something worth remembering in our own lives.
Because sometimes we're told that we need to let go of something as though it's a decision we can simply make.
For example,
Letting go of your past or a worry.
Letting go of expectations.
But there are those things that aren't that easy.
So maybe simply we can just simply begin to loosen our hold instead.
And I really like that idea.
All about loosening.
Maybe you've been holding yourself to an impossible standard.
Or maybe there's a plan that hasn't worked out quite as you imagined.
You don't necessarily have to make some enormous declaration that you're letting it go forever,
But you can just hold it a little less tightly.
Allow a little space around it and just see what happens because release does happen gradually and that is one leaf at a time.
Another reflection that I'd like to share is about the quietness.
And that that doesn't mean nothing is happening.
And this is one of my favorite autumn reminders.
Because as the season moves on,
The landscape can begin to look increasingly empty.
Those beautiful flowers begin to disappear.
The leaves have fallen and the branches become barer.
Gardens become quieter too.
And if we only looked at what we could see above the ground,
We might think that everything has stopped.
But of course it hasn't,
Because the roots are still there.
There are so many seeds resting in the earth.
Energy is being conserved and the soil is still alive.
So much is happening.
That we simply can't see.
And I think there are times in our lives that are really like that too.
Those times when we don't feel as though we're moving forward.
Something we've been working towards isn't happening quickly enough.
Maybe we're recovering from something.
Or just being uncertain about what's next.
And sometimes we're just in a quieter period of our lives.
So it's very easy to look at those times and think we're somehow standing still.
But remember,
We don't always know what is happening beneath the surface.
So you may be processing,
Learning,
Healing,
Changing your perspective and gathering strength.
Or just simply allow yourself to be where you are.
In this present moment.
So not every kind of growth is visible.
Not every season needs to produce something.
I think there's something incredibly reassuring about that.
Because it reminds us that those quiet seasons,
They really count too.
Sometimes just being here as you are living,
Breathing,
Noticing,
Experiencing.
Just to take a moment to reflect on that.
And we come now to another reflection.
And maybe this is the simplest lesson of all.
Because autumn reminds us to notice.
It changes so quickly.
Can walk past a tree one week and it's beginning to turn gold.
A few days later,
It's glowing with beautiful color.
Then suddenly you notice the branches are almost bare.
But if we're not paying attention,
We can miss these wonderful moments in nature.
And life can sometimes feel like that too.
Because we're so often thinking about what comes next.
Tomorrow,
Next week,
The things that we need to finish,
The places we need to be.
That can be even while something beautiful is happening right in front of us.
So autumn really is an invitation to bring us back into our senses.
To notice the color of the leaves.
Feeling the cooler air on your skin and listening to the sound beneath your feet as you walk.
Take some time to notice the changing light.
Just feel your breath that gentle flow.
In and the gentle flow out.
These moments they don't have to be anything extraordinary.
Could just be the sunlight shining through your window,
That conversation with someone you love,
A bird appearing in the garden.
A moment when you suddenly realize that right now you feel so peaceful.
So these little moments,
They can be incredibly easy to overlook.
Because we might be waiting for something bigger.
But much of our lives is made from these moments.
And autumn's reminder is that not everything is disappearing.
You just simply need to be here for it.
So notice this season while you're living it.
Notice this day and notice this moment.
So as I move into this autumn,
I'm trying to carry some of these lessons with me.
To rush a little less,
To notice a little more,
To respect my energy rather than constantly expecting it to be the same.
And to really loosen my hold on some of the things I don't need to carry quite so tightly.
And to remember that quiet periods aren't empty periods.
So just reflect a moment about what autumn is asking of you.
Is it more space?
Is it breast?
Maybe you need to explore the countryside more.
Nature.
Maybe it's creativity,
Connection.
Maybe it's movement,
Laughter,
Stillness.
And you can just simply begin by noticing.
And I feel that's one of the loveliest things that nature teaches us.
Because we can learn to move with them.
To recognize when it's time to grow and when it's time to rest.
It's time to hold on and when we might loosen our grip.
It's time to move outwards and when it's time to gather ourselves home.
The home within.
So wherever you are listening to from today.
Take a moment to look around you.
Notice something that tells you the season is changing and allow that to be your little reminder.
That you are allowed to have seasons too.
So thank you so much for sharing this moment with me.
I hope something I've shared with you has stayed,
And even something that you will notice differently the next time you step outside.
So take gentle care of yourself and I'll meet you again soon.
Namaste,
My friend.
