It’s officially the Fall season. All the signs are there, leaves falling, air getting crisper, pulling out sweaters to wear. It’s nice to get into the season of making soups or stews, wrapping up in a cozy blanket and sitting by a fire. This is also the time when we often start speeding up and preparing for upcoming holidays. We feel the pressure to do more, move faster and we begin to rush, rush, rush more than usual.
But what is the meaning of Fall? The Fall season, or Autumn, is a time to harvest what you’ve grown, take inventory and enjoy what you planted so long ago. It’s a time of transition and change as we begin to prepare for the winter months. But most importantly, it’s also a time letting go. The trees teach us to let go of what no longer serves.
So, how does moving at warp speed align with Fall's timeline? Well, it doesn't.
As we spend time in the Fall season, let’s take a moment to be, to breathe, to slow down and take in the lessons that Fall has to offer:
A Time to Let Go
As the Fall leaves turn from green to rich warm tones of reds, oranges, yellows and browns, and then eventually fall off into crisp piles, we are reminded that it is a time of letting go. It’s time to let go of that which no longer serves or helps you. It’s time to let go of anything that doesn’t nourish or energize you. It’s time to let it drop.
The falling leaves and bare branches remind us of the fleeting nature of things. It pushes us to embrace the inevitability of change. That there is something happening outside of ourselves that we don’t have a lot of control over. The bare trees remind us that it’s time to come back to who we are at our core, in our barest form, to connect deeply to ourselves.
A Time to Harvest
Fall is traditionally a time to harvest what you’ve tended to and grown, an accomplishment from the previous seasons that you get to enjoy, that feeds and nourishes you. As you harvest the fruits of your labor, it is an opportunity to appreciate and have gratitude for your hard work, for all you’ve grown and harvested for the year. It’s a time to celebrate, feel humbled yet proud of your bounty and take it all in. It’s a time to prepare for the winter, using your harvest for fortitude and strength.
A Time for Balance
The Fall Equinox is a day when there is a precise balance between light and dark. There are roughly the same number of hours of daylight as there is night, at the beginning of the Fall season. It is a time of perfect balance.
The Fall season invites you to move towards balance. Being aware of what throws you off balance is a way to care for yourself. Take inventory of what drains you and what feeds you. Practice grounding practices to find centeredness and balance. Finding balance will decrease stress and create more ease.
A Time for Transformation
As the temperature begins to drop and cool off and we move away from the warmth and comfort of summer, and as the trees transform before our eyes, Fall reminds us that it is a time of transformation and change. As we shed the old, that which does not serve us, and as we harvest all that we’ve worked so hard to grow, we can move forward with more lightness and ease.
Fall is a time to harvest your strengths, accomplishments, failures, lessons, and everything else the year has brought you. As you harvest all that you have tended to, grown and experienced it gives you an opportunity to reflect on, and appreciate all that you’ve grown and how far you’ve come! All that you’ve managed to move through, accomplish, survive, and grow from.
When you harvest all of your experiences, you take time to honor yourself. It gives you a moment to really stand in awe of your harvest, at what you’ve managed to bring to fruition, of what you’ve been able to bring to life. Harvesting your strengths is also a way to gather energy and renew our strength for the next season.
What lessons do these experiences offer that can help you grow further into who you want to become? What can you let go of that doesn’t help you grow? Transformation comes from the letting go; from harvesting your strengths and lessons, from leaning into balance not speed, by taking time to savor the present.
WILD Art Tip
Materials needed:
Markers, paper OR watercolor/watercolor paper
1. Take a moment to reflect on your harvest for the year. What did you grow this year? What did you manifest? What did you accomplish and achieve? What were your fails and what can you take away from them? How did you yourself grow over the course of the year.
2. List them on a piece of paper
3. Then, taking your art materials, create a visual of your “harvest”. Remember that it can just be colors or shapes, no realistic pictures necessary. Allow your brush to move without thought.
4. Keep your image close to you and acknowledge and celebrate YOU and your harvest! Journal prompts to enrich the experience:
What did I grow this year? How did I grow this year?
What is the bounty of all of my successes, and failures?
How can I shift the vision of my garden to grow and harvest more? Or is this harvest enough?
What are my takeaways and learnings from what I grew this year?
Taking the time to fully acknowledge and take in your bounty from the year, to acknowledge all the ways you have grown, will energize you to move forward and live with more purpose and intention. Incorporating art, play and gratitude towards you and your bounty will help you feel confident and empowered to keep going.
Myriam Martinez is a Women's Mental Wellbeing Coach, Creativity Mentor, Art Therapist, and stick figure artist based out of Northern California. She gently guides women to embrace their Woman-ity© and love themselves fiercely through the power of the creative process. Her calling in this life is to teach women the power and importance of putting themselves first, loving themselves fiercely, and tapping into their creativity in order to bring more happiness, success, and ease into their lives.
To learn more about Myriam click here: https://www.myriammartinezcoaching.com/
Self-care, acknowledge strengths, balance