Mother Nature's Reset Button

As I was walking on a trail yesterday, I was making a conscience effort to look at the trees and the fields and capture that picture in my head. The yellows, reds, oranges, and even subtle beige colors. It all felt so alive and virbrant. If you look at the colors of Fall and don’t feel something inside you, then you need to be looking a lot closer.

The leaves are taking a final bow. Soon they will all fall to the ground. The crops have been harvested, the fields all lay flat. The forest will soon give the appearance of being dead. Quiet. Still. The sky will turn to gloom and it will feel as though a wave of sadness has cast its shadow over mother nature.

As with nature, so it is with my soul. My mind. My body. This season shows us how lovely it is to let the dead things go…..isn’t that a wonderful thought? I read that somewhere and it really touched me.  For the first time I am allowing the seasons to dictate what needs to be done inside as well. Because we all know that the trees don’t die. The crops aren’t gone forever. The clouds will break. But we must honor the time that they need to reenergize. To be dormant so that they can grow fresh and new and stronger underneath. It’s not always pleasant or pretty. Uncomfortable even…especially for humans. We can choose to fill this void with travels and distractions, purchases of unneccsary things, fill our calendar with plans OR we can allow our own nature to sleep more, gather strength, focus on the inside as opposed to the outside. To allow our roots sometime to rest.

So I’m setting specific goals for what that looks and feels like to me. More tea. More sleep. Less screens. More books. More actual phone calls. Even MORE books. Poetry. Writing. Yoga. Breathing. Snuggles with my children. Snuggles with my husband. Snuggles with my dog. Comfy pajamas in the middle of the day. A warm robe in the afternoon with a cup of hot tea. Listening to a podcast that inspires me. Writing letters to old friends. Deactivating social networking accounts that distract me from enjoying the things around me and making a conscience effort to really connect with people. I will hold that picture in my mind of the vibrant colors for those days when it seems like the grass will never be green again. I’ll go back to that memory and remind myself that the cycles of Mother Nature aren’t just for the plants, but for the creatures that inhabit the earth. We all need a little hibernation and a reset button. I will take advantage of mine…will you as well?