“There is something in October sets the gypsy blood astir: we must rise and follow her , when from every hill of flame she calls, and calls each vagabond by name.”–William Bliss
Fall is the perfect time for hiking, walking, or simply heading out-of-doors for any sort of physical activity. The changing landscape, crisp air, and the earthy scents of damp soil, decaying plant matter, and the musky-sweet scent of drifted piles of discarded leaves invigorate the soul. After sluggish months of heat and humidity, autumn’s sudden drop in temperature is enough to not only add bounce to our step and inspire movement, but also create stirrings within.
Fresh air has a way of plowing the mental landscape into a bucolic pasture of peace and positivity–if only for a short while. What miraculous logic lies in this seasonal change. It is as if, by Divine design, that fall provides us with an opportunity to elevate the spirit, boost the body, and clear the consciousness in preparation for the impending darkness of winter months.
Walking this weekend along a favorite wooded path, I couldn’t help but follow these seasonal musings of my mind. After a long, exceptionally challenging week, it felt both cleansing and healing to immerse myself in the quietude of nature. No headset, nor blathering talk; no tedious tasks, nor irksome situations. Like soaking in a warm, scented bubble bath, stepping onto the wooded path, I immediately felt submerged in the tranquil bathwater of autumn.
Before long, I was lost in the sounds of restless tree branches bouncing in the fall breeze, the humus scent of mulched debris, and the changing hues of leaves and grass. Of course, my mind does not like to be quiet for long, and soon enough, childlike tantrums for attention interrupted my equanimity. Without any warning, my mind began stumbling and bumbling through past events instead of anchoring to the present and peace of the surrounding natural world.
“I cannot endure to waste anything so precious as autumnal sunshine by staying in the house.”–Nathaniel Hawthorne
Isn’t memory a curious process? You can forget about an event, experience, or moment. Then suddenly, as if tripping over a tree root along a smooth forest pathway, you tumble head first right into the past. Like the long roots of trees, past episodes can be found along our life path, but often we are so focused on moving forward, we overlook those rooted memories that make up the tree of our life. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing, unless we haven’t made peace with certain past events.
In the ideal world, falterings into the past can be easily side-stepped, allowing us to keep moving ahead with ease. Like the broken limb of a tree, these past happenings may have left us feeling as if a piece of our life was fragmented. Sometimes, these can be small, mendable, events. Other times they are life-altering occurrences that sever ties with a friend, love, or even family member. Divorce, death, loss of job/home/income, and other hurts can all leave us feeling as splintered as a proverbial tree trunk.
At the time, it feels as if we will never be whole again; never able to grow, much less thrive. However, like the maple tree that lost a major branch in a winter ice storm, our hearts, given time, do heal at the source of the break. It may take several seasons to fully recover, but similarly to the mighty maple, once recovered, we find we can tap into the sweetness of life again.
Some triggered memories, like a fallen log across the path, can seemingly be foreseen well ahead of time. It could be a special celebration, a family or friend gathering/reunion, a party, or other organized event. We see it well in advance–the potential to bump into branches of our past. Therefore, we deliberate, strategize, and plan how we will not allow ourselves to be tripped up, to fall into past, negative behaviors, or other self-defeating notions. If we’re fortunate, we trek through the event without a single obstacle tripping us up, and we wonder why we wasted all that time worrying. At other moments, we repeatedly flounder through multiple encounters without ever gaining a steady foothold due to overthinking or over-efforting.
Other memories we stumble across can be simple knee and/or palm scrapers–just a little momentary scuffle. They are the unforeseen life encounters in which we come face-to-face with our past. Like that hidden rock along a regular walking path, unearthed by heavy rainfall, we’re confidently moving forward when suddenly a buried memory triggers a brief, but sharp tumble. Momentarily we are once more wounded, lost in the temporary feeling of pain, but quickly rise, wipe off the proverbial dirt of the past, and keep hiking on.
Then there are those rocky memories. Those awkward, cringe-worthy moments of impulse, illogical, or otherwise preposterous life hiccups. Like the rough part of a well-worn rocky path, all lives have these times. In fact, these memories, when randomly run across, can sometimes leave you doubled over with laughter as you fumble through recollections of those bumpy reminiscences.
Aw, the path of life, like any good hike in the woods, is full of thorny patches, toppling obstructions, and adversarial pitfalls. Nonetheless, our trails also meander through lush fields of golden moments, wound ‘round bends of colorful times, and over walkways of unexpected joy and bliss. Through the seasons of memories, all the good and the bad, our life paths keep moving us forward. Thrusting us into the now of our lives.
Clearing my mind, and shaking out its detritus of the past, I once more returned to the present moment of the autumnal walk. I felt the air brush softly against my cheek and watched a chubby, round-eyed raccoon waddle away from me. I left the past behind on that trail, decided to let the future take of itself, and began to once more soak up the present moment of the fall goodness, one glorious step at a time. Oh, how I love October.
“I’m so glad we live in a world where there are Octobers.”–L. C. Montgomery, Anne of the Green Gables
Steph Simply 