Song for Autumn
In the deep falldon't you imagine the leaves think how
comfortable it will be to touch
the earth instead of the
nothingness of air and the endless
freshets of wind? And don't you think
the trees themselves, especially those with mossy,
warm caves, begin to think
of the birds that will come - six, a dozen - to sleep
inside their bodies? And don't you hear
the goldenrod whispering goodbye,
the everlasting being crowned with the first
tuffets of snow? The pond
vanishes, and the white field over which
the fox runs so quickly brings out
its blue shadows. And the wind pumps its
bellows. And at evening especially,
the piled firewood shifts a little,
longing to be on its way.
~Mary Oliver
Autumn is one of my favorite seasons...conjuring up memories of the clean slate of a new school year, along with the blazing beauty and distinctive tastes and scents of fall. Nature doesn't whisper but shouts for us to notice her in this season...a perfect reminder that mindfulness is always available if we simply pause and notice.
During this season, sandwiched between the extremes of summer and winter, how might you bring a bit more awareness, a bit more mindfulness into your everyday? For me, it is finding that one bit of beauty each day that i can focus on with my senses...perhaps it is a maple leaf that is the most brilliant shade of orange, or maybe the distinctive scent of smoke from a wood stove, or the anticipation of the crunch and sweet juice from a freshly picked apple. In our busyness, we often forget to harness the power of one bit of beauty...autumn shakes us awake to notice, if we let her.