Dear Friends,
Over the years I have found myself sinking deeper and deeper into the rhythms and cycles of the seasons to support my daily life - but why? Because it has supported me to honor the natural cycles in myself and prevented me from falling into the over-culture's abyss where we are brainwashed into always being 'FULL ON'!! Modern Western culture wants us to be in the yang energy of a permanent summer - always on the go, foot full on the throttle, our plates so full that there is little or no time to stop, reflect, breathe and 'be'. Giving our body and soul no space and time to communicate with us about this state of permanent 'output', leaves us little or no time to tune into ourselves and what is supporting us (or not) in our lives. The result of this is the massive amounts of stress and burnout that we see in US society today, and I have experienced this for myself - twice!
Back when I lived in the UK (and what feels like several lifetimes ago!) I was in a very stressful teaching post in a College, as well as holding down a private voice practice in my 'spare' time. I travelled with my private work alot to Europe, and was also several years into a stressful relationship that wasn't working out. I had also suffered a traumatic loss from a previous partner who had committed suicide several years before.....and I had never really processed that or even had time to!
The result of this over time was severe burnout which manifested as a nervous breakdown (or 'breakthrough' as I prefer to call it now). It was as if my brain simply switched off, and I wandered around in a daze, unable to function, work or even really relate much to anyone. I craved solitude and simplicity, silence and time to just let my poor nervous system recover. I was blessed with a kindly GP at the time who signed me off work for a month. All I remember from that time, pretty much, is sitting in my living room watching the birds play on the birdfeeder in my garden......and my mind and body rested.
Unfortunately, I went back to the same stressful, toxic work environment, and carried on just the same having recovered some of my energy and clarity A few months later, after no shifts in the toxic relationship and some financial stressors thrown in, I found myself, this time, in bed with chronic fatigue. This time I was unable to even walk more than once round the block a day - exhausted, overwhelmed and weepy.
My body was forcing me to confront what my soul was trying to communicate to me in very strong terms - get out of the job and the relationship, both! It was a terrifying time, but I had finally been forced to stop so I could listen to my inner self. It took time, but the resulting transformations are some of the reasons I ended up very happily living in the US with a business I love, a great marriage with a supportive husband, great Tribe and even a wonderful step-son who I love dearly!
Why am I sharing all this in relation to the Autumn Equinox you may ask.....? Well, for me, these days, taking retreat time out regularly with a group of souls also wishing to take time out of busy lives, supports us all to take seasonal moments of deep inner reflection, a 'sacred pause'. This is a time to unplug and go within, and to align with the support of the season to do so. Fall Equinox is a time, after active and busy summers, when the day and night are in perfect balance, and so we reflect on this - on 'balance'. Questions for reflection might be, "What is in balance in my life at this time?"; "What is out of balance and needs some fine-tuning?"; "Am I on track with the intentions, the dream-seeds I planted at the Spring Equinox, or do I need a course correction?"; "What steps do I need to take to make that happen?". At this time of fall, we also honor Mother Nature's simple wisdom of 'letting go' - the leaves simply drop from the trees; the big energy surges of spring and summer start to recede, and Nature now returns to the business of resting and re-sourcing so that all can begin again in the spring with new vigor and growth. Mother Nature knows that She needs this time to replenish Herself, that she cannot always be 'full on' in growth and production. She needs to rest, and so does the earth - to lie fallow for a time. We have much to learn from this in our busy modern world. We are part of nature too - we need times to rest and replenish, and to find sacred spaces in supportive tribe where we can co-create these re-Sourcing times together. It is a time to slow down, rest and nourish ourselves deeply.
We are still basking in the summer heat, but not so many weeks away the Fall Equinox is beckoning us to take some sacred time to re-balance and reflect on where we are at in our lives right now.
If you are a woman seeking such spaces, do join Renee Green and myself at Sycamore Canyon for a camping retreat in nature to re-Source your precious Self. You are welcome, and we would love to share this sacred time with you! Find out more here:- https://www.greenrenee.com/2024-fall-retreat/
Blessings
Stella xxx
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