The air smells different this time of the year. It’s cold, it’s crisp – it’s brimmed with hope that the last three months of the year will be the best to come.
The air is cool and refreshing after a summer of hot, dry air (and very very dank air). After all, we had quite the rainy summer…
The air triggers a desire for fuzzy blankets and knit sweaters and warm aromatic drinks. It makes us want to retire the lively tunes on our summer playlists and reintroduce the melodic, soulful tunes of the Fall. It’s when the binge watching of our favourite comfort shows and movies commences. It’s when we end most evenings curled up on the couch – or in bed with a book. It’s when the candles (and the lamps) make an appearance as the sun begins its departure much earlier in the day.
The air is only the beginning of the changes to come. The leaves will transition into a myriad of warm colours – ruby reds, burnt oranges, golden yellows. They’ll embellish the trees before they fall and become a mere crunch below our feet. The cool, gentle breeze will become colder and less forgiving. The cozy sweaters will change into (even cozier) coats and hats and mitts. The sun will do its thing and go to sleep long before we do….
It’s that time of the year.
The season’s changing and just like that, so are we.
Every now and then, I think about what it would be like if I lived in a place that was warm all-year round. A place with different seasons that felt mostly the same, save for some odd breezes, rainy days and dry spells here and there. Sounds nice, right?
Then there’s Canada with its heat waves in July and snow days in March. We can’t forget about the months in-between… The blossoming flowers and trees that fill the air with the most beautiful fragrances each spring. Then there’s the season in which we’re entering: Autumn. A fan favourite.
There’s so much to take from the changing seasons – there’s so much to love about it. There’s also so much that we can take and apply to ourselves and the little journey that we’re on.
Much like the weather changing every season, we change too. Think about your 13th winter and now think about your last. Think about who you were a single year ago versus who you are in this moment.
In every season, we are a brand new person. Say what you wanna say, but you are never stagnant – never the same person you were the day before. You’re not even the same person in every breath.
Every second of life breeds new experiences, new thoughts, new emotions and all of these things make us into a new individual on the daily.
My wise younger sister brought up an analogy of a tree last week. A tree goes through it every season. It’s lush and green in the summer. It’s sparser and orange in the fall. It’s naked (and probably horribly cold) in the winter. Yet, every spring, there’s new buds and with it, a renewed vigor.
Sure, the tree has been through it, but it is important to note that it is bigger than it was the previous year. It is wiser – it is sporting more sprouts and therefore, it will be better than ever before despite being nothing a few short months prior.
We are like trees. We have periods that feel still, periods of rapid growth, periods of never-ending challenges, periods of win after win… At the end of the day, no matter what each season brings, we stand taller and firmer than the season before.
The best part about the seasons changing (and us with it) is that we are never the same. There will always be this opportunity to reinvent ourselves and be better than we were the day before.
So if you’re currently in a rut, know that it’s temporary and when you feel ready, reinvent. If you’re living a soulless life and secretly desiring something else. Reinvent. If you’re bored of something as simple as your taste in music… Reinvent. If you’re a cranky individual with nothing nice to say. Please, for the love of God – reinvent.
The opportunity is there. At the end of the day, everything in life comes down to the choices we make. Will you take the opportunity or let it pass you by?
The choice is yours.