Time Changes, Life Changes
We’re half way through October already!
Living in Naples, September always feels like the longest month of the year. It’s hotter than hot. So much of the country is starting to cool down, I always feel longing for a little freshness in the morning air. But it doesn’t usually come until October and even now, the daytime temperatures are in the high 80’s and low 90’s. But that tiny break down into the 70’s in the morning does help! And I know that it will continue to cool ever so slowly. Occasionally, we can even open the doors and windows for Thanksgiving. Sounds funny, doesn’t it? To equate the holidays with being able to get fresh air into the house? But yet, this is life in southwest Florida. You do get used to it.
As we prepare to fall back and gain that extra, precious hour in about three weeks, I have to confess something.
I love when it gets dark outside earlier.
I don’t know many others that subscribe to this view, but I relish the lure of being snuggled in bed a bit earlier. I feel the pull to leave the office when the day ends rather than work longer into the night. It already feels so late! I want to make pots of soup, light candles and read a book.
Well. Then again, it’s me. You know I always feel like lighting candles.
But in my world, this is the enticement of sanctuary. Be at home. Be at peace. Sink into the softness of your space, your sanctuary. Fall is the perfect setting, isn’t it?
Thinking about the different personalities of the seasons, fall has always been my favorite. As much as I love the jubilance of spring and the abundance of summer, it’s fall that really engages me. The quiet, the urge to rest, the upcoming holiday season. I would add wearing boots and sweaters, but alas, it’s still too hot.
(Don’t think I haven’t turned the a/c down and put on a sweater from time to time. I am not above this ridiculous indulgence.)
The season changes, the time changes, and interestingly, our life changes.
My life certainly has changed this month in ways I’ve never experienced.
Walking beside my husband Philip as he travels the road to recovery after his surgery has been eye opening to say the least. I have faced his mortality and mine. I woke up in a world of doctor’s visits, strict diets, home-blood-pressure machines and pain meds. Together we are learning to find joy in the tiny victories every day brings — walking a little bit further, sleeping a little bit better, needing a little bit less medication.
It’s been a call to survey the landscape around me with a more discriminating eye.
Less comfort food, more healthy choices. Less rushing around, more appreciating the slower pace. Less pressure to DO, more permission to BE. Even now, I am still learning the way to live better and work with the shifts that life brings.
Alan Watts was quoted as saying “The only way to make sense out of change is to plunge into it, move with it, and join the dance.”
So that’s me this week, joining the dance. Maybe you’ll join it with me?
With love and gratitude,
Lisa