Life always
seems to speed up with the arrival of the Fall season. And, this year where I live, Fall came sharply. A first thunder storm passed over just days
into October. Mother Nature reminds us
that we are not in charge, things are about to shift and those warm, leisurely
days of sand and sun will be slipping away.
Locally,
October Open Art Studios begins, Oktoberfest is celebrated, and leaves crunch
underfoot on my creek hike. It occurs to
me; everything happens in October!
The meadow I
pass several times a week looks as peaceful and striking as always. It displays seasonal change but in a quiet
way. The mix of soft browns with smaller
muted areas of color is not only home to tall grasses, wildflowers, redwoods
rising up to the mountain tree line, but an abundance of animal life as well. You can set your watch all year ‘round by
when the deer come out to nibble.
Fleetingly, you can glimpse a half-seen coyote - its ears, back, and
tail – trotting low through the brush.
Bunnies appear suddenly and disappear just as quickly. And, of course squirrels. Stand still and look straight up and you can
see beautiful large birds – circling for prey – red tail hawk have a meal on
their minds, searching, swooping straight down, rising up with that special
‘something’ caught in their beak.
It all
unfolds at a quick pace. The creek is rushing a little more; the water appears
a little clearer, chillier, and deeper.
Dampness clings to rock and branch from the night before bringing the
occasional neon touch of bright green to come.
We are witness to the amazing spectacle of color, action, change; everyone
and everything is out and about; nature’s special treat before the first
frost. And, though we joyously observe,
pausing to savor or grab at such moments…. November is suddenly here!
In the U.S.
we have just left behind a bitter Presidential election. And now I am looking straight into the usual
holidays – Birthdays, Thanksgiving, and whatever stresses or releases these
events bring on. Evening darkness is
arriving earlier. I began using the
heating system in the house this week and pulled out my faithful electric
blanket. At market I can’t find the
light summer fruits or vegetables anymore and replace them with the new
seasonal goodies. Driven indoors much
sooner, while I miss my usual treasured evening hike, I also feel the urge to
hibernate, curl up on the bed with a new book.
My Fall
season mandala offering is pictured here.
It’s a quick rendering of the aforementioned meadow at the peak of change. There are no
mistakes here. It is perfection; both
the meadow itself (of course) but even my depiction of it. Not the inauthentic perfection we often
mistakenly strive for, but the natural living, moving perfection placed in
front of our eyes by the divine miracle of Life and our expression of it.
We do not
point out how dried up blossoms are falling to the ground. We point to the
beauty of the full bloom of ALL things happening now! We stand in awe before the whole stupendous
show and deeply understand that this
is aliveness! And, we know too, this seasonal
peak reflects us, what we really are or long to be. Whatever our various human dramas may hold
they pale in comparison. We have been
pre-empted. That is the magic of the
season. That is how October seems to
bring ‘everything’. And, so it
is…….SENDING LOVE AND SMILES TO YOU ALL……….
“…Medicine
wheel, the sacred hoop of life, in which all things end as they began: in which the world was turned slowly but
beautifully backwards, towards the freedom in Nature the ancestors knew…” (Russell Means)
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