Autumn: an introspective time

This column seeks to help educate our community about emotional healing through grief. People may write questions to Golden Willow Retreat and they will be answered privately to you and possibly as a future article for others. List a first name that grants permission for printing.

Dear Dr. Ted: I realize that we are in a wild time in our lives as human beings walking this earth. There are so many environmental factors that come flying into our personal and collective world that can make it difficult to find any type of balance. You have mentioned so many pertinent issues such as politics, the pandemic and many other crises that seem to be inundating our mind, spirit and emotional world all the time. If I stop and think outside of the human dilemma, it seems the cycles within nature have a measurable impact as well. Would you agree with this?

Thanks, Ashleigh

Dear Ashleigh,

Thank you so much for reminding me that earth continues to go round and round, and seasons come and go as the natural cycle of the earth is also doing its work as well.

I think how much COVID-19 (still part of nature) has engulfed humanity and that has allowed me to forget to look out the window and even know what season it is outside! We happen to be in the season of autumn, when many people celebrate Halloween, All Saint’s Day, Día de los Muertos and All Soul’s Day.

I don’t find this as a coincidence as the days are getting shorter, it is getting colder and darkness seems to be the prominent factor as we move into winter. It is as if our natural systems know that it is a time to start slowing down and prepare for the winter, while waiting for spring.

The seasons show us the natural cycles of birth, growth, brilliance (wisdom) and death. We watch things sprout, grow, reach abundance and then come to an end. Even if we are not conscious of this cycle, our bodies try to be in tune with the natural cycles of the natural environment around us.

Seasonal Adjustment Disorder is very real for many people and it is our system trying to adjust to the changes within the environment. SAD can show up as anxiety, depression, fatigue and/or other symptoms as the body tries to adjust to the new season.

One way to decrease SAD as well as just be more conscious of nature, and how we walk with nature, is to take time with ceremony and ritual. This allows our brain to realize these natural and normal transitions are there, and we are part the natural cycles of the world. Ritual and ceremony can be a great way to ease into different cycles within our life, which includes our own developmental stages, the earth’s transitions and how we dance with so many cycles within our entire life. It can also allow for a better relationship with death so that we can honor, respect and live life more fully.

In this time when many types of darkness seem to be oozing in, may we find the light by taking time to become conscious in this transitional time. A friend shared this with me, “Honoring loss through ceremony can remind us that we’ve loved others and that love is meant to live on through us. Honoring our ancestors is a loving reminder that we shouldn’t take our joy for granted, or mistake a pain for something permanent.”

So, during this time of transition, full of many special days for many people, may we honor the seasons and the natural cycles within our lives and universe.

Thank you for the question. I wish you well. Until next week, take care.