The crisp air that has ever so slightly cooled down and makes you want to inhale deeply.
A longggg, beautiful breath of fresh air.
The feeling of cozying up on the couch with a blanket and hot cup of tea in hand.
Oh and the colors! Don't you just love those rusts, golds, yellows and red? Even eggplant comes into harvest in that gorgeous purple.
And who can forget all things pumpkin -- hello Starbucks and Trader Joe's!
Fall arrives and you get to stop and relax.
The pause....
the moment to breathe in deeply.
Savoring it and then exhaling a little more slowly.
In the Shintaido tradition of honoring nature, fall is the time where people come back together. It's our season in life when we connect and reflect back on our lives.
Fall is the evening of the day when we are done with work and take time to unwind and connect with loved ones.
Fall is the late adulthood of our life. When we can look back at our years and reflect on all that's happened.
Fall is the time of rest, the time of reflective change, the time to breathe.
And of course, fall is the season where nature shows us how beautifully things are settling down.
As I reflect back on this year, I have to admit it didn't go in all the ways I expected. And that's okay.
There's so many colors to view our life with, the various perspectives as we slow down. Rather than beating myself up for not meeting all my "goals" for the year, I can see what this year was filled with instead (after some soul searching!). For me, it's been a year of immense transition. Marriage, moving and motherhood in less than a year. It's been more than I anticipated in good and also in (OMG!) tough ways.
My reflections have left me knowing that change can be hard as hell AND I am just putting one foot in front of the other.
Giving myself the grace to learn along the way in spaces that I can't control or feel my usual comfy self.
And to not forget that my happiness truly comes from my own self (this one is so easy to forget when new, bright, shiny objects come into our life).
So how about you?
Maybe a lot has happened to you this year as well. Big things that may be hard for others to understand but they mean a lot to you.. Or maybe another year has gone by and you're wondering what you're doing with your life. It could even be watching others grow around you while you wonder when it will be your time....
Whether it's happy or sad, light or dark, what you wanted or not....take it all in. Reflect on what this year has been filled with and how far you've come. Because whether you know it or not, you have walked further down your path. And your path is unique to you and absolutely perfect.
How far you've come is not in the doing, but in the being.
So here's a fun way to make this real. Take some time to get cozy with that tea or pumpkin spice latte and write down your reflections of this past year. Do it from the perspective of your being (not your doing). What have you learned about yourself? What are you grateful for? What are you ready to let go of in this time of change?
I would love to get a peek inside if you're willing to share! Include one reflection in the comments below.
And hey, share some of your pumpkin spice latte over here please!
Hugs,
Shazia
p.s. If you want to go deeper and explore where you want to be in your life, let's chat! I coach women to find their clarity and step into their confidence...even if that seems like a far away notion! See how your life can transform -- more easily than you may imagine! thelifeengineer.com/transform