More than any other time of year, I find autumn to be a time of reflection and new beginnings, the authentic New Year. For me, it is more Janus-faced than January- a time of looking back and looking ahead, of replaying some of the languid freedoms (or this year, chilly ones!) of summer and imagining the lively productivity of colder months.
For some, this New Year begins on the first of September, for others it’s Labour Day. For some, it is the autumnal equinox that kicks this new chapter off and for others it is Rosh Hashannah. For me, the ‘very beginning of the end of summer’ is signalled when the supermarkets pack up their parking lot garden centres usually, it seems, before summer has even begun. Every year the sight of those newly available parking spaces chides me. “Time’s up!” they seem to say, “I hope you didn’t want to plant anything else!” It’s a premature declaration that the year has peaked already and the last act has begun. Regardless of when it begins, what a ‘last’ act it is- and what a debut as well! This grand finale / grand entrance is a time of intense life, bountiful and dazzling harvests, trees in their finery, renewed bounce and purpose in our steps.
It’s also a perfect time for seasonal contemplation. In the rush of our lives, with the constant lure of immediate gratification and demands, there is something to be said for being in tune with the seasons, the constant inhalations and exhalations of nature, the tides of our lives. The autumn New Year provides us with the perfect opportunity for:
- Looking Back: at what we’ve planted, nourished and harvested such as relationships, projects, skills and ways of being in the world
- Standing Still and soaking up the fleeting wonders of today like the sweet acidity of a freshly picked tomato, the attentiveness of a crowd of sunflowers, the smell of a cozy fire warming someone’s cold hands, the sound of geese V’s practicing for distant journeys
- Celebrating Our Triumphs and Learning From Our Mistakes: taking the time to do things right like starting with healthy soil, planting on the sunny side, supporting the bean plants
- And Moving Ahead: Autumn is also a time of redemption, a time of moving forward with determination, humility and faith in the power of second chances. It’s a time of planting flower bulbs and garlic, and trusting that spring will bloom again and with it, the hopes and dreams that start right now.
