Autumn Meditation

There is tremendous relief when we stop trying to fight the seasons of our lives. It's a futile battle. How crazy would it be if I ran around gluing fallen leaves back onto bare branches? I rest when I honor the natural ebbs and flows of my life. Darkness as well as light. Warmth and cool. Flowering and withering. Below is something my Mom wrote for a recent Spirituality group she leads at the Women's Hearth. It helped me accept the fact that my sap has withdrawn into my roots. It's not something I wanted or needed -- it's simply the fact of what is true for me right now.

Autumn
by Joyce Blazek

Just as nature goes through different seasons, so do we, for although we are spiritual, we are also part of nature. Although we may not go through the seasons at the same time as nature, it’s good to take time and note what is going on.

The Fall Equinox is a time when the darkness and light are in balance. The days are warm, the nights are cool. It’s a time of balance, but with the knowledge that more darkness is coming. The leaves turn color and fall. The sap withdraws from the trees and goes downward into the roots. There are two aspects of autumn that are very strong in our lives also, that of balance and of letting go.

Balance in our lives can be very hard to obtain. Balance of...

• Work and play
• Quiet time and busyness
• Love for ourselves and love of others
• The kinds of foods our bodies need
• Balance of our physical, emotional and spiritual needs

Letting go. Surrendering. What needs to be left behind? What have you outgrown? Remember that to make room for something new in our lives, we have to let go of something else. Letting go of...

• Trying to control someone else
• Being judgmental
• An emotion, maybe fear or envy
• An illusion
• An unhealthy relationship
• A resentment
• A belief you’ve outgrown
• An addiction
• Being a victim
• Blaming other people
• Gossiping
• A bad habit
• Possessions
• Whatever no longer serves you

What is no longer working for you that you want to let go of?

(Photo by Greatestdancer.)

Comments

[storyteller]

Wow -- It's true that the apple doesn't fall far from the tree! Your mom writes beautifully and her words (and questions) will remain with me as I go about my day. Give her a BIG HUG from me!

Balance and letting go ... two recurring themes in MY life and ones I'm specifically playing with (I've given up "working" on much of anything these days) right now.
Hugs and blessings,

[Jennifer Boire]

Carla
wise words,wise mom.
The moon mom tells us this too: we do not shine 100% on full all month long. Every quarter brings a new phase. Dark of the moon, time to let go. New Moon, make a wish for new beginnings....wax and wane with your womanly cycle.
loving thoughts,
jenn

[bella]

Resisting never works, even when I try.
Surrendering to what is, letting myself feel what I am really feeling, not seeking to contort myself into an idea of what I "should" be but rather embracing myself exactly where I am. It is what allows things to flow, to move, to ride the wave of these seasons that come and go, all on their own.
Such a lovely and timely post.
And what do I need to let go of right now? Ignoring my body and trying to pretend it is not in pain.

[Laure Krueger]

Ladies . . . am I tracking with you!!!

One day recently, I was observing my flesh nature that is so automatically and vehemently opposed to the acceptance, surrender, and cooperation necessary for balance and letting go. I then wrote this poem ...

Remembering . . .
provokes my tenacious spirit
to refuse the dying year
whose whithered leaves,
like my own,
must fall, and scatter
and be lost.

I am grateful that God used you to confirm these things He has been speaking to me. Thank you!

[Rella]

This was wonderfully thought provoking. Thank you. I truly enjoy all that you share.
R
Best ~ Rella

[eileen (the dream)]

OK, that's it ... your mom is on my best friend list now, too. Reading this came at precisely the right moment. I was letting someone take space in my head, rent-free (as we like to say). The phone just rang as I wrote that last sentence, and after checking caller ID, it was VERY clear that I did not need to answer it; the unhealthy relationship (OK, God, I heard you!) who needs to be evicted.

[Kikipotamus the Hobo]

This gorgeous photo fills me with peace and trust that even as the earth on this side of the globe slips into dormancy, all is right with the world.

[Blog Envy Awards]

Congratulations! You are a winner of a 2007 Blog Envy Award. To see your award, please go here:http://graceeaseplease.blogspot.com/2007/11/blog-gods-are-in-auditorium.html

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[nita from red tin heart]

Good post. I needed to read this. xoxo Nita

[poetryman69]

Nice photo.

Autumn is a good time to contemplate.

of a fire on the moon

of fox fire and will o the wisp

of misty mornings an sod grass

of rising before the dawn

of moonfire

[kathyann]

Thank you so much for posting your mums writings,I so needed to read this just now !!!! I have to learn to let go,it starts here and now !!!So glad I stopped by.Kathyann at Meg's Mum's Muffins

[Chani]

Beautiful photo of course.. and I particularly liked your line about pasting the leaves back on the trees. :)

[kyoung529]

This seems to be my morning for reconnecting with my spa sisters--I can't believe this is the first time I'm seeing this blog, Carla!

What a lovely, thought-provoking entry. I'm finding that the forces of culture seem to intensify just as my mind/body/soul need to quiet down. How does one actually live in balance? Something to think about...something to practice.

Karen