Autumn – The Coming Rest

Barely the equinox, and leaves are already turning. The hills are eager for the fall this year, grateful after months of parched skies, thirsty even for the morning dew which comes now with cooler nights.

I slept out last night in a grassy field near a stream lined with alders, in a narrow valley that flows down to the coast near Half Moon Bay. The silence of the night beneath water sounds and cricket songs holds a simplicity that is salve for over-worked brains. Fielding too many details that come flying fast and unrelenting as they do in our computer-driven age can leave mind and nerves edgy and worn. Out in the flowing quiet of the night I am soothed, relieved, quickly restored to a sense of an ample and blessed Now, free of any shred of hurry or need for accomplishment.

Evening and autumn share a movement toward stillness. Shortening days hold the promise of slowing and rest. What should I choose to do today, Sunday, that is more important than immersing myself in the land to witness its graceful letting go of industry? Leaves are spent now, fruits and seeds matured and dropped, carried away by wind and birds; growth is accomplished. The time has come for rest. I choose to rest, too, to join nature’s slowing and inner renewal.