seasonal thoughts

As we enter each season, we enter a time of change. Such is nature. Where once we heard the steady rhythm of life; the chirping and squawking of birds and the hum of insects, now we are given silence. Green growth has given way to brown and tree tops once lush now stand naked, skeletal remains of what was.

Here in the Northern hemisphere daylight has been steadily decreasing since the summer solstice. We are on the verge of winter and the most welcome rebirth of the sun. We have worked hard planting, tending and harvesting since spring, in preparation for this time. Like the squirrel we have gathered and stored. Nature in her wisdom has always shown us the way. As we enter the season we are prepared for the coming months and time of stillness, a time of withdrawing into the warmth of hearth and home.

Despite what the world of commercialism would have us believe, Nature teaches us that this is a time for slowing down, for stillness and for taking inventory of our lives. If we allow Nature to guide us on the path we come to understand that the hustle and bustle of the holiday season is unnatural and manmade. We humans have been misled to the point of turning the holy days of winter into holidays of excess and overindulgence. I believe Nature, in her eternal wisdom shows us quite the opposite and that now is a time for conserving our energy and our resources.

As we enter the coming days it is wise to consider how Nature behaves. In the season of stillness, let us allow ourselves stillness. In the season of quiet reflection, let us allow ourselves time to reflect on the past and consider the future. Our thought, plans, ideas are as seeds, let them germinate so in the future they may take root and grow.

Just my thoughts on this gray November day.