The light begins to leave the earth a little earlier and the winds have a slightly different feel. There is an energy that seems to take us on a journey inward. This is the turning of the season from Summer into Fall. The leaves on the trees begin to change and shift, moving from bright green, to shiny gold, to vibrant red and orange. Eventually the leaves dry completely to a brittle brown and let go of their hold on the branches. They are ready to let go. They do not suffer or fear the shift, but rather embrace it, allowing the wind to bring them back in to the earth.
We as humans are very much like these leaves, always changing and shifting, and one day we will return to the earth. As a child and young adult, the fall was always a melancholy time for me. The nature of my upbringing was one that had me moving and starting new schools every few years which was challenging. However, as an adult I have shifted that mindset and I love the fall! I connect so much with the changing of the leaves and the shift of the planet into more darkness. It is a time to pull inward, away from the Yang energy of Spring and Summer, and into the Yin energy of Autumn and Winter.
In order to balance ourselves we must be as the seasons are, and Mother Nature helps us in that process. Although all climates are not the same, for may of us the weather turns colder. In some places like Maine, the sun actually starts to go down in the late afternoon. This draws us inward physically as the days turn darker and colder, we long to be inside, warm and content. We would expend too much of our life force if we were constantly in that outward energy, we need to internalize.
See yourself as the leaves of an oak tree, riding the waves of change without resistance. Some days you are like the very soft bud of a newly born leaf. On another day you are strong and green, holding on tightly to the branch. Then as another day rolls by you begin to soften and let your golden light shine. Once again you are vibrant and strong, deep orange and red, like fire. However, if the fire burns to hot you will turn to ash, so instead you let go a little at a time. With grace and trust you allow yourself to turn back into the earth, and then you start again.