Hello September and welcome to the fabulous transition into Autumn- leaf colours and low sunlight being my favourite bits.
I have been considering transition points a lot over the last few years (for obvious age-related reasons) and would like to make a case for reframing how we view them. For transitions are the inescapable periods where we change from one state of being into another and without them we cannot remain congruent to who we are, ever-changing mentally, emotionally and physically.
Let us look at Autumn through the eyes of a tree for a moment. Trees, like humans, are ruled by an internal circadian rhythm that is driven by external cues (sunlight and temperature). When there is light, they make and store the sugars they need in order to function, a process known as photosynthesis. During the darkness hours, they slow down and rest, using those sugars they made during the day to survive. So just like us, they have periods of activity and periods of rest.
When the cooler temperatures and shorter sunlight days arrive, deciduous trees stop producing chlorophyll, which they use to convert light into energy to grow. Chlorophyll is the pigment that gives leaves their green colour. When production slows down, the chlorophyll fades and yellow and red pigments are revealed. Thus the wondrous turning of the leaves that signifies Autumn occurs. Once all the useful materials from the leaves are absorbed back into the tree, they can gently fall away.
This is one of the more obvious ways Nature prepares itself for the cold winter months to come. Autumn is, in effect, the preparation time for a kinder winter.
Let’s take this process and overlay it with the human midlife transition. If a lifetime is distilled into the 4 seasons, then shifting into Autumn feels like perfect alignment for this hugely pivotal time of life.
The cooler temperatures and shorter sunlight days arrive to us mid-life humans as fading hormones, creaky joints and a sense of bemusement as to how we ended up here. The reduction in photosynthesis reflects our diminishing energy levels and new-found emotional discord- where has the buoyant, vital and freer version of us gone? It encourages us to be nostalgic, reflective and often breeds a sense of dissatisfaction. But instead of viewing this as an annoying age-related crumbling, this is the soul’s natural call for us to have another go at sorting our s**t out.
Living in a society built for the young- strength and success, productivity and drive- the physical changes and mental discord that descends as we transition into our older years often comes from a place of desperation, reaction, of being ‘less than’ we used to be. This then casts a dark filter over all the things we do to try to help alleviate the impact of this transition business- whether therapy, a new exercise regime, intermittent fasting, reducing our carbs intake or basically taking any supplement to bring back our quality sleep! Instead of coming from a place of scrabbling to refix ourselves, let’s gratefully watch our bodies and minds transition with all these helpful realignment tools and acknowledge we are different but ready for the next chapter as the new version of us emerges. This is Nature’s way of preparing us for a kinder Winter, a kinder older life.
Like the trees, we should focus more on the ‘useful materials’ we must absorb back into ourselves so that the no longer needed parts of us can fall away. For it is the wisdom, knowledge and experience we have gained and the search for who we truly are that guides us to see, often for the first time, the gifts we have to share in our eldership….. and what an utter privilege that is.
Wishing you a lovely September, may the changing leaves affirm life and bring a smile to your face :) We look forward to talking to you again in October.
Anne and Ric x