Autumn

Beautiful tree with yellow leaves As the summer comes to a close, there is a feeling of quiet loss and budding anticipation. The slower, more languorous days have slipped away until next summer’s heat brushes the earth. We are left with wistful memories, while at the same time we can detect a feeling within of growing eagerness as we prepare to greet the energetic autumn air. Lest the quieter days of summer pass without attention, or the feeling of budding potentiality get lost in the busy-ness about to begin, it is good to take some time to write in your journal about the tender scratchings that summer left on your heart, and the creative scribblings yet to be etched on your soul as the days of autumn unfold.

journaling exercises:

Reflecting on Summer Past
What did summer’s laziness teach me about:

Myself

My world

Others

God

What were the most important encounters I had this summer? How was the face of God revealed to me in those encounters?

If I could change the movements of this summer, what alterations would I make?

What surprises, unexpected occurrences, unwanted difficulties did I experience this summer?

Where was the grace of heaven most present to me and most absent from me?

Reflecting on Fall's Unfolding
As I look toward the return of a fresh phase of school, work and plans, what longings seem to be silently beating within me?

How would I like to make room for the Holy One in my life as my day takes on a different rhythm?

What anxieties or worries seem to gnaw at my soul as I move into the next month?

How will I open and nurture the call and touch of God this next month:

In myself

In my family

In my workplace

In my personal relationships

Explore Faith

Autumn