I don’t know if it still plays on television, but I love the Tim Hortons commercial that describes our feelings as Canadians about the coming of fall. A woman is walking down her street on a sunny summer day, when she looks down and sees a maple leaf that has fallen from a tree to the ground. She looks into the camera and screams, “Noooooooooo!”. We are moving from the warm lazy days of summer to the chill and busyness of fall.
Officially, summer ends and fall begins on September 22 at 9:54pm. This is a perfect time to consider our spiritual journeys. What can we meditate and pray about as we enter this special time of the year? How will we be transformed this fall? Here are a few things we all can consider.
1. Balancing darkness and light. We often fear the dark and only adore the light. Joyce Rupp, a Catholic writer and poet challenges us to befriend our inner darkness: "I gratefully acknowledge how darkness has become less of an enemy for me and more of a place of silent nurturance, where the slow, steady gestation needed for my soul's growth can occur. Not only is light a welcomed part of my life, but I am also developing a greater understanding of how much I need to befriend my inner darkness."
2. Letting go. As we watch leaves fluttering to the ground in the fall, we are reminded that nature's cycles are mirrored in our lives. Autumn is a time for letting go and releasing things that have been a burden. All the religious traditions pay tribute to such acts of relinquishment. Fall is the right time to practice getting out of the way and letting Spirit take charge of our lives.
3. Acknowledging impermanence. Autumn reminds us of the impermanence of everything. We have experienced the budding of life in spring and the flowerings and abundances of summer. Now the leaves fall and bare branches remind us of the fleeting nature of all things. "The poet Wallace Stevens once wrote, 'Death is the mother of beauty.' What those words say to me is that we cherish the beauty of a sunrise, of a relationship, of a child's hug, precisely because those things will not be around forever and neither will we be around to enjoy them."
I pray you find the peace that passes all understanding as you enter into this fall season.
Rev. Rob+
Officially, summer ends and fall begins on September 22 at 9:54pm. This is a perfect time to consider our spiritual journeys. What can we meditate and pray about as we enter this special time of the year? How will we be transformed this fall? Here are a few things we all can consider.
1. Balancing darkness and light. We often fear the dark and only adore the light. Joyce Rupp, a Catholic writer and poet challenges us to befriend our inner darkness: "I gratefully acknowledge how darkness has become less of an enemy for me and more of a place of silent nurturance, where the slow, steady gestation needed for my soul's growth can occur. Not only is light a welcomed part of my life, but I am also developing a greater understanding of how much I need to befriend my inner darkness."
2. Letting go. As we watch leaves fluttering to the ground in the fall, we are reminded that nature's cycles are mirrored in our lives. Autumn is a time for letting go and releasing things that have been a burden. All the religious traditions pay tribute to such acts of relinquishment. Fall is the right time to practice getting out of the way and letting Spirit take charge of our lives.
3. Acknowledging impermanence. Autumn reminds us of the impermanence of everything. We have experienced the budding of life in spring and the flowerings and abundances of summer. Now the leaves fall and bare branches remind us of the fleeting nature of all things. "The poet Wallace Stevens once wrote, 'Death is the mother of beauty.' What those words say to me is that we cherish the beauty of a sunrise, of a relationship, of a child's hug, precisely because those things will not be around forever and neither will we be around to enjoy them."
I pray you find the peace that passes all understanding as you enter into this fall season.
Rev. Rob+
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