A Cycle Of Reflection

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Changing Of Seasons

In this modern world, it is easy for many of us to feel loosely bonded to the world's cycles. As many of our duties tend to stay the same through both heat and cold, the equinoxes and solstices may carry little weight. Yet the seasons do shift, daylight waxes and wanes, and, sometimes extravagantly and often subtly, nature changes her face. Many ancient cultures devised artful explanations for the never-ending transition from spring to summer to autumn to winter. The Navajo Indians believed the seasons were caused by Estsanatlehi, the wife of the Sun God. They believe that Estsanatlehi renews herself each spring, blossoms in the summer, ages through the autumn, and dies in the winter.

The four seasons are often associated with a joyous, eternal cycle of life. We can look to the cycle of the changing seasons to create meaning within our own lives. In each season, there is a prevalent mood that can inspire poignant reflection. Autumn ushers in crisp, chilly mornings and evenings. There is a shortening of days and a lengthening of shadows. Winter creates a bare landscape bathed in bright, pure light. Spring is a time of regrowth and new possibilities. While summer is a time of long days during which the rich fullness of those possibilities can fully blossom. Like the changing seasons, life is cyclical. Look back over the years, and you can see your own symbolic springs, summers, autumns, and winters.

Each new season brings with it familiar joys that can be pleasurable to reacquaint yourself with. Try eating seasonal foods and participating in seasonal activities. Decorate your home with spring flowers, yellow and brown leaves, or holly. Give in to your body's seasonal desires. You may feel like nesting in the autumn or staying close to home in the winter. Embrace the feelings that each new season awakens within you. Above all, savor the changes, knowing that each season that passes will come again. As we welcome in autumn, breathe in the last perfumes of summer's flowers while enjoying the coolness of autumn. Celebrate the longer nights by spending time with loved ones, just as you celebrated the lengthening of days by rushing to greet a renewed outdoors. Always remember that each season can connect you closer to the earth's cycles while bringing something special into your life.

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