An Ode To Autumn by Bob Jones

I wasn’t able to attend InScribe’s Fall Conference. That was a loss for me. However, Charity Mongrain let me know I was named the winner of an InScribe award.

True story. I have own only two awards for my writing. Both times I was not able attend the conference. Now I face a dilemma – the next time I enter a contest, should I stay away or show up? Advice solicited.

As I have not attended any recent conferences I offer you an ode to my favorite season. Autumn.

A change is in the air.

It’s in the breeze, in the trees, inside each and every one of us. And somewhere, not far off, the smoke of backyard firepits is seasoning the darkening sky.

Each year October arrives all bluster and invites us to stay outside and enjoy a few more days of color and light. Some deem the season after summer in the prairies as “fall.” I like the eastern term, “autumn.”

All too quickly, leaves change color and fall to the ground, where they await to be raked into clear plastic bags or bonfires. In autumn we go back to school, back to work, and back to the future.

Our beach chairs were packed away while envisioning next summer’s dreams. We unpack our woollen socks. In autumn we stop to watch the trees and their painted leaves. We watch the skies for geese and listen for rain. We settle into long pants, sturdy boots and trusty raincoats. This time of year, we remember our love for pumpkin spice in lattes and pies. We purchase bushels of apples and bake with buckets of cinnamon.

Each year, autumn reminds us to return to routines that anchor our lives in time. We relive glory days. We gather together in football stadiums, and around October tables.  In the shadow of shortening days we retell tales of gridiron glory and harvest bounty.

Autumn is the story of life, of how endings follow beginnings and time always leads to new beginnings. Autumn gives us a better perspective on the full story of our lives – discovery and loss; sacrifice and surprise; an eternal rhythm that keeps us whole.

This autumn, harvest all the light and life, and goodness that you can. Embrace the season for all its worth before the winds of winter begin to billow.

I am a recovering perfectionist who collects Coca-Cola memorabilia and drinks iced tea. My walls are adorned with our sons’ framed football jerseys, and my bookshelves, with soul food. 

I write to grow hope, inspire people to be real, forge an authentic faith in Jesus, and discover their life purpose.

Please follow my writing at REVwords.com

An End or a Beginning? - Marnie Pohlmann

The view from the top of the hill looking over the valley shows a landscape clothed in summer greens and autumn golds with deep red highlights shining in the afternoon’s pale sun. The air is still warm, but with an undertone encouraging longer sleeves as the breeze arouses goosebumps on my arms.

I’m not ready to let go of summer, especially as the long days did not bring enough time in the sun. Cloudy skies and raindrops discouraged me from enjoying lazy hours in a lawn chair. I’m not ready for the shorter days of fall that move too quickly into the cold white season.

Autumn has always been my favourite season. I love the smell of fresh paper and coloured pens as the stores fill with school supplies and the promise of new learning, experiences, and friendships. Fresh produce is plentiful and tasty. Activities I have enjoyed or wish to discover are beginning to be scheduled. A restful summer usually means I am energized for the busy change of seasons.

But not this year. This year I look in the mirror to see myself clothed in highlights of gray, sometimes silver as my hair catches the pale sun. I still feel young, but my aging skin needs longer sleeves as it thins and becomes marred.

I’m not ready to let go of youth, or even middle age, especially as that time of my life was not filled with long days of enjoyment. Sadness and tears discouraged me from growing to where I hoped I would be by this time. I’m not ready for the fall days of life that seem to move so quickly into the winter season.

As I considered this Autumn time of my life, I expected it would be more productive and enjoyable. I enjoy my work but am ready to leave it behind to make room in my days for other learning, experiences, and friendships. New opportunities are plentiful and exciting. Activities I once enjoyed or ones I wish to begin could be scheduled, but I do not have the energy to try them.

At this time in my life I see a tired woman who doesn’t know where the time went and has thin skin that reacts too often in ways that cause scars or bruises. Yet this is the season of life I am in. There is no going back to Spring or Summer. There is only Autumn, which will turn too quickly into old age. I don’t want this time of life to lead into a winter of discontent, so I ask God to develop in me a renewed love for life and the discipline to make this season one of growth, with productive activity in His plan. I may be aging, but I am not too old to learn new lessons about God and walking with Him in every season. I will continue to climb the hill, following the path God has appointed for me. I will take time to see the beauty of this present season rather than dwell on the losses of the past or predicting the trials of the future.

What about you?

Are you taking joy in the present season of your life?

Or are you hibernating, sleeping through the days as they are neither colourful nor filled with opportunity? 
Do you view the Autumn of life as a time for fresh growth, new experiences, and new connections?

Will you carry on in the direction God has been leading you in, knowing the road may be more difficult but trusting the view from the top of the hill will be clear and beautiful?

Are you content, treasuring your present season, seizing the opportunities God provides, and actively living through shortening days?

May God provide you with the assurance of His presence, which is all we need no matter our season of life.

Falling into Autumn/Out of the Express Line ... by Jocelyn Faire

Ruthlessly Eliminate Hurry John Piper

“Sometimes these are the slowest lines,” the white haired customer ahead of me lamented. I agreed adding that this was my second slow express line of the day; I'd been at Walmart that morning and was certain the lady ahead of me could not count, clearly she was over the limit. “If this is your second express line today, you might be a slow learner. But,” he paused, “I'm guessing we both have enough time that we shouldn't be hurried.” My response included a chuckle, “Well, looking at the others in this line, I'm guessing that overall you and I have less time left in our lives, and I don't want to be wasting it in a slow line at Safeway.” With a twinkle in my eye I added, “I also don't buy green bananas anymore.”

     When observing others, I think of aging as the autumn season of life, a kind of unhurried time. There are parts of this I love ... the slow down after a busy summer, the cooler weather, the invite to sit by a fire, the harvest time of apples, and the way autumn carries itself with an elegant mature beauty. While I want this season to feel unrushed and want ample time to be still and know that I am God, the harsh reality is that life continues in busy format, unless I do something about it. While in her early nineties my mother expressed that time still passed too quickly for her, even though she spent much of the day in her chair with few tasks on her to-do list. She spent her time remembering. 

     One of my favourite theologian poets John O Donohue said “In the autumn of your life, your experience is harvested ... Aging invites you to become aware of the sacred circle that shelters your life ... In fact if you come to see aging not as the demise of your body but as the harvest of your soul, you will learn that aging can be a time of great strength, poise and confidence." My sister-in-law believes people's character distills over time, both the best or worst have potential to grow stronger.

     I've come through quite a long season of transition ... Feb 2020 will mark the fifteenth year that two of my children went to Heaven ... to say it has been a journey would be the biggest understatement of my life. In the last decade, I have lived on two different continents in five different places, undergone divorce, ended my nursing career, began writing, met many, good-byed many, remarried, blended two families. The highway of transition has been a rich, difficult and beautiful journey with much time spent both in the desert and by the nourishing river waters. Change is constant, but self-initiated change is always more welcome than change thrust upon us. And now I find myself in a new season ... and it takes adjustment as well ... you see we never arrive at a place without some baggage from the previous season. As obvious as it is, our today, is not exactly a brand new slate. We may enter the autumn phase having undergone a wet spring, a dry summer, a late frost, a freak hail storm. And seasons do not end precisely on their designated equinox days ... chinooks do happen.

     When I ponder the question Jesus asked Bartimaeus: What do you want me to do for you (now)? I wonder what do I want? Reversal of time does not happen. Through the grief journey, I feel as though I “lost” some of my productive years ... and yet, while on the healing road, there was/is no point in hurrying. I knew I did not need to explain to God my hours spent in reflection and contemplation. While I lived my life solo, I had no one's task oriented life to measure mine against. Now that I have remarried, with a husband who works half time, I feel as if my productivity is once again measured by tasks done. This is more my perception than his. In her book Jesus Calling, Sarah Young tells us that spending time with God can be a difficult discipline because it goes against the activity addiction of this age. You may appear to be doing nothing, but actually you are participating in battles going on within spiritual realms. Last Sunday morning I passed a little girl on training wheels calling out ... Help Mommy, I'm stuck and can't move. At times I feel like I'm still spinning my training wheels, not going anywhere. It's not God's measurement I'm up against, it's my own, as perceived by others. Perhaps the man at Safeway was right, perhaps I am a slow learner.

     With God's help, I want this to be a slow down time to take in the elegant beauty of fall and share from my harvest those who need its gleanings. This week my new granddaughter and I were picking leaves in awe of the rich reds. To take a line from a gardening show ... I've matured into foliage. And isn't that a beautiful thing!

Embracing the Season by Sharon Espeseth

Later Fall Near Our House

It's autumn, "later autumn," ”I call it. The leaves have fallen and nature’s colours appear muted compared to the more colourful days preceding. The sunrise surprises us with a palette of pastel. A walk feels good, if you bundle up. 

I have seen many Novembers and I'm writing this on my birthday, which calls for reflection. The signs of my times tell me I also am in the "later autumn" of my life. The colourful days of raising children, teaching, managing the household and family, shopping, and travelling are vanishing. 

Hank asks me what I want.

After 43 years of marriage, the Norwegian and I don't always exchange gifts, but this birthday Hank asked, "Do you need, or want, anything?"

"No, I don't really need anything," I said, chuckling. 

"Jewellery? A new pair of earrings. . . ?" he asked.

I’d love a new pair of earrings," I said, in light of this being a special birthday and Hank’s offer to celebrate with me. 

What do you want me to do for you? Jesus asks Bartimaeus.

Unsplash

While Jesus and his disciples and a large crowd were leaving Jericho, Bartimaeus heard it was Jesus of Nazareth passing by. "Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!" he shouted. 

When others tried to silence him, Bartimaeus cried out all the louder. 

Jesus stood still and said to his disciples, "Call him here."

"Take heart,” they said. “Get up he is calling you." Bartimaeus quickly threw off his cloak, jumped up and came to Jesus.

Jesus asked, "What do you want me to do for you?"

Without hesitation, he answered, "My teacher, let me see again."

 "Go." Jesus said. 'Your faith has made you well." (Bible reference: Mark 10:46-52)

Just as Hank asked me what I wanted for my birthday, Jesus asks us what we really want him to do for us. Our answer would be more serious than a pair of earrings, but my story is a reminder that Jesus wants us to consider what we are asking for. 

Learning to embrace this season of our lives

As we get older, my husband and I are facing more health problems. Hank, my senior by a few years, faced the first onslaught of the aging process. Being a couple, when life slows down for one, it slows down for both. Adjustments are needed. 

Hank and I pray about our health, especially Hank's health, but, as Hank's doctor says with a kindly smile, "I can't make you 21 again." We’re both trying to reset our minds regarding what we can realistically do. I've been slower than Hank to accept our new limitations. Since we can’t change what is, we need to change our expectations, and to pray for strength and guidance from there.

Last spring when I became ill with depression, again, and neuralgia, which was new, we faced obstacles in managing the basics. My doctor advised me to curtail all activities, including writing and music. Of course, I still wrote, but it was Morning Pages, for me alone. I still sang, but it was in the basement on my own. I needed to rest. Hank and I leaned on God, on each other, and on our family and friends. 

I feared something would happen to Hank. I feared being on my own after all these years. God assured me he still had "plans to prosper us and not to harm us." (Jeremiah 29:11)

Like Bartimaeus, I needed to throw off my cloak of doubt and fear and to ask Jesus to give me fresh “insight” as to how I must walk during this season of my life.

A message from The Message

Eugene H. Peterson in his "Introduction to Proverbs" in The Message says, “Many people think that what's written in the Bible has mostly to do with getting people into heaven. . . It does have to do with that, of course. . . It is equally concerned with living on earth--living well, living in robust sanity."

Proverbs 3:5-6 in The Message says, 

                                              "Trust God from the bottom of your heart,

                                               don't try to figure out everything on your own.

                                               Listen for God's voice in everything you do, everywhere you go,

                                               he's the one who will keep you on track.

With God's help and his Word to guide me, I am learning to embrace this "later autumn" season of my life. He "has not given (me) a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind." (2 Timothy 1:7) 

As Eugene H. Peterson might say, I plan, with God’s help, to live well and "in robust sanity" during this season of my life. I am learning to embrace life and what is!