Here is fall! Soon winter will be upon us. Such a wonderful time of year. Time of reflection on your improvements, wins, celebrations and other most excellent stuff that happened. AND interestingly enough … more time of change. Under the surface.
The spring and summer are times of growth. Green leaves, flowers and new branches. With FALL and winter … we have a time that we move slower, conserve energy and change things up. It does not mean that we do “less important work”. We think about investing, working on foundation pieces, changing things that we like would like to see different. We do this so when ACTION time comes again in the spring and fall, things are a bit different than previous. Growth.
Trees go through a similar process. They lose their leaves in the fall and winter. Doesn’t make them less of a tree. Or not as strong of a tree. Sometimes branches break off. Sometimes the weight of the snow helps to facilitate change. A needed process as sometimes the branches that needed to go, maybe they are a bit weak. In this way … the tree isn’t utilizing vital energy keeping alive a piece that isn’t really helping anymore. Helping the “big picture”. Pruning. Shedding. It can be a painful process … but much needed.
And another thought to throw out. This branch. The one that is “weak” … “broken” … “no longer needed” … could be VITAL the the survival of other pieces of the puzzle. This branch can fall and provide a home for creatures living on the forest floor. So the “weak” branch really isn’t of less importance … it’s use has shifted to somewhere else. The tree isn’t served by struggling to keep the branch alive. Yet sometimes the tree can’t get rid of the branch itself …
Such as life … sometimes the challenges that we have “inspire” changes (or really stronger encourage or MAKE HAPPEN). The weak branch, once a strong branch, now having served it purpose or withstood some challenge, moves on to a different purpose. Our challenges are like the snow, helping us to “let go” of the branch. Hopefully in an objective, namaste kind of way. Not that the branch no longer serves us, though this is true, hopefully in a shedding process were we knowledge that what we are needing to get rid of will be used elsewhere.
Energy is neither created or destroyed. Just changes. Thanks Newton. Thanks Thermodynamics.
The process can be lonely. The process can seem tough and overwhelming. Seriously, it’s cold and quiet. We don’t hear a lot of the birds. We miss the green color and the fresh smell. However this is what encourages the roots to reach deeper. To make the tree stronger. To shed the old, no longer needed to make room for new and different. Getting through these times of change and growth can be rough. New. It’s kind of easy to fall back to old thought patterns, behaviors. It’s normal to feel like you are going crazy a wee tiny bit. It’s normal to feel uncomfortable. The thing to focus on is your faith, trust and keeping your eye on the prize. To keep moving forward, one step at a time … because we all know that it gets harder (hardest) at the very end. Like with ironman, those last couple miles are brutal, but the break through at the end is completely worth it.
So, are we talking about the …
- ATHLETE: Do you need to drop weight. Get rid of an injury. Get your mind right.
- MOM: Adjust your relationship with your kids, be less friend and mom and more boss. Or be less busy so you can listen more and role model more of what you want to see.
- WIFE: let go of past stuff to provide space for new chances, new “stuff”
- HUMAN: let go of past stuff to make room for new. Let go of “not good enough” so you can dream bigger. Be less focused on yourself and “SEE” other people, be of more service, smile more, hold more doors open
- the list goes on and on …
Keep your eyes up
Hearts open
Trust
Have Faith
Keep moving forward
