did you feel it?

The calendar may say it is the middle of October, but fall has arrived. I am beginning to put my garden beds to rest for winter. It is time to thank this space and the Earth. It is time to say, “See you next spring”.

I think many people think of fall as that brief moment in time where summer is still hanging on.  Those final weeks of September and early October, where the days are warm and the nights are crisp.  We think of campfires and the emergence of sweaters.  Here in Wisconsin we love to complain that the weather “can’t make up its mind”.  We start off with a sweater and end our day in a tank top. We (not so) secretly LOVE IT!

Fall has actually just begun.  Fall begins on September 22 and will last until December 21.  The first two weeks of fall are simply the transition.

We often mark fall for its vibrant color.  Did you know that the brilliant colors of any given tree last a total of 7 days?  A whole region, based on tree diversity, can be just 3 weeks? Trees are receptive.  They are photoreceptive, by responding to the change in day light, they begin to shift. With the cool temperatures, they are also receptive to temperature, they acknowledge that it is time to break down the chlorophyll and unmask the other colors within.  

Remember everything in life has a time and phase or season.

What many deem as “fall”, is just the transition.  In a culture where we struggle to accept change, we honor this adaptation in the northern woods with hundreds of photos on our phones.  We acknowledge that the tree is responding to the call to let go, and move into what is next.  

I invite you to acknowledge your vibrancy.  Acknowledge the strength to break down into your glory. Be willing to adapt to a new way of being. I invite you to recognize that all things have a season. It is okay to say goodbye to something wonderful and to create space to welcome in the new. It is okay to say until next time. We physically or mentally cannot hold space for all the wonderful things in life. Instead we get to hold these moments in time with gratitude for what they bring, however brief. 

This Week’s A Door Within:

• Did you feel it?

• How can you honor this moment in your transition?

• How do you say, “Until we meet again.”

♥ Ashley