There are enough signs that we’re entering the Fall Season that I find I am excited to entertain changes.  The school buses are running again, and I see parents in my neighborhood walking their young children to and from school each day.  Grocery stores are already displaying Halloween decorations and candies as well as an assortment of mums and pumpkins.

Growing up in the Midwest and now finding my home in New England, I have been blessed with the gift of living in parts of the country that definitely have four seasons.  I’ve learned with time to enjoy all four periods of the year, but I’ll readily admit the hardest season for me to learn to enjoy on the same level as others has been Summer.

If you have read some of my Blogs in the past, you may find that admission strange given how much I enjoy my gardens.  It is actually my gardens that helped me begin to see new possibilities in the summer months.  My biggest challenges in the  summer months are the high levels of heat and humidity.

Another significant factor in my learning to enjoy summer was finding ways to cool my house. When I realized that I  could cool down once I went inside made a huge difference in how I experienced the summer months.

Autumn is a beautiful season in New England; the daytime temperatures begin to cool down while still providing us with bright sunny days.  The daylight begins to decrease, and that used to bother me more when I was younger.  But as I’ve aged and discovered ways for using my time in creative, relaxing, and meaningful ways, I adjust more easily to entertaining myself when it begins to get darker earlier.

For many years I’ve decorated my house with seasonal touches: dining table linens for each season; seasonal wreathes on my front door; different bedspreads for summer and winter months, and an assortment of other small decorative items symbolic of the different seasons.

I find noting the change of seasons serves as an impetus to both reflect on how I used my time in the season that is ending as well as identifying how I want to use my time in the emerging season. Note my planning is more about general things I’m striving for as opposed to a detailed list.  Just taking the time to think about what I was able to complete or make progress on  during the Summer enables me to consider what my priorities are for the Fall.

It’s the sense of something ending and something beginning that I find invigorating.  I’ve learned to focus on the positive ways that I have used my time and not beat myself up for things that didn’t happen.  I have a variety of inspirational sources I peruse on a daily basis.  As I’m having my first cup of coffee in the morning, I take stock of what I’m feeling and what feels like it is calling me.

One of my favorite resources I’ve mentioned before.  If you’re interested, the book is written by Sarah Ban Breathnach, titled Simple Abundance; 365 Days to a Balanced and Joyful Life.  One of the reasons I love this resource is it is so down to earth.  It combines pearls of wisdom drawn from many spiritual nurturing sources while also addressing our more basic needs.

I love a portion of the authors’ entry for January 4^th.  The entry starts with a quote from Henri      J. M. Nouwen, a Dutch Catholic theologian and writer: “You don’t think your way into a new kind of living. You live your way into a new kind of thinking.”

Early into the entry, Breathnach shares an insight that has served me well.  “Let’s meet the two secret agents of self-sabotage, the Regret and Remorse twins. These twisted sisters are up to no good and they’re determined not to let you move one inch without them.  That’s because they feed off our sad  and dark emotions.  They need for you to be down and out, disillusioned, and depressed, so they’ll distract you for as long as they can, however they can. For what you are striving to do this year is not just increasing the amount of light in your own life but increasing the light you bring to the world.”

Here’s how this quote helps me as I allow an emerging season to serve as my reset button.  I take the time to acknowledge what I accomplished in the passing season, in this instance Summer.  For me this Summer  I welcomed more free time as some of my classes took time off over the summer.  We had a lot of rain this   summer, so I focused on doing some deep dive cleaning and clearing out.  It felt really good to tackle these projects and complete them.

Some projects tugged at the heart strings more, like buying a new address book and adding in the names and contact information of folks who are still part of my life.  I approached the project in small doses – I did two letters of the alphabet each day.  My old address book has been with me for more than forty years, so not surprisingly many of those I’ve known in the past have died or have moved away and I’m no longer in touch with them.

I spent time each day reminding myself of the ways in which I am grateful for what I learned and experienced with each person that made it into my former contact list.

I also discovered that I like the freedom it gives me to adjust my daily plans when I have more free time.  This insight is making herself known to me currently, advising me to be careful about how I allocate my time in the Fall. 

One of my summer goals was to increase the number of times each week I made it to the gym.  I succeeded in achieving this goal in July but fell behind in August.  Rather than focusing on berating myself for my August showing, I’m simply making attending to my fitness in the Fall a priority.  Part of that plan is not knowing what kind of winter we’ll experience – the forecasts are that my area will have a lot of snow this winter. So, planning ahead, I want to make sure I feel really fit going into winter.

I’m grateful to the Seasons for they offer me this gentle boundary of time to pause, reflect, and to reset!