A perfect rainy fall day. Yellow leaves covering the grass. All the colors seem more intense in the wetness. A few birds come to the thistle feeder. It seems quieter in the rain.
The fall is a beautiful season, and yet I often don’t appreciate the beauty because of what it represents – the ebbing of sunlight, shorter days, colder weather. I remember years when the seasonal depression has set in like a thick, heavy almost choking fog.
So a season of beauty turns into a time of dread.
So, this year, I make plans to greet the long winter as a time of possibility and challenge. Stay in better physical shape. Get outside as much as possible while the sun is shining Schedule some time away. A place for painting and plans to rework a couple of pieces of furniture. I’ve already begun, a few weeks ago, to use the light box every morning. Working on my DMin project proposal, which I’m excited about. Cook and eat healthy meals. Enjoy playing with the animals who live in my house.
Above all, enter this season with mindfulness. Focus on what is, and expect the Spirit of God to be present in life giving ways.
