The Dimming of the Days

I went for a long walk in my beloved Wolsfeld Woods SNA yesterday. Along with the dimming day length, the colors in the woods are dimming too. My heart saddens a bit at

At the same time my heart was gladdened as always, to walk under the majestic tall sugar maples and wise old oak trees of Wolsfeld Woods. This is my soul’s home, the place that calls to me again and again. I’ve been walking these woods for over 25 years. And I hope to continue walking them until I die. They teach me all I need to know about life and death.

…I keep looking for one more teacher, only to find that fish learn from the water and birds learn from the sky.”
― Mark Nepo, Facing the Lion, Being the Lion: Finding Inner Courage Where It Lives

With many of the leaves on the ground now you can see the bones of the land and the bones of the trees clearly. Wider vistas open invitingly. The colors now are more russet and brown than bright gold and orange like they were just two weeks ago.

As I drove out to the woods along Highway 6, the colors along the road had also dimmed. Gone were the bright scarlets and bright yellows of earlier fall. Now russets, browns, and muddy greens dominate the color palette.

But out in the woods I still found pockets of color along the way, sometimes on the ground and sometimes high in the sky.

It’s a good thing that there are usually few walkers out in these woods. The way I walk along head craned towards the tree tops, stopping to admire the beauty all around, I might cause a collision.

Just for now, without asking how, let yourself sink into stillness. Just for now, lay down the weight you so patiently bear upon your shoulders. Feel the earth receive you, and the infinite expanse of the sky grow even wider as your awareness reaches up to meet it. Just for now, allow a wave of breath to enliven your experience. Breathe out whatever blocks you from the truth. Just for now, be boundless, free, with awakened energy tingling in your hands and feet. Drink in the possibility of being who and what you really are – so fully alive that the world looks different, newly born and vibrant, just for now.

Danna Faulds

Though we are in the dimming of the days for this season, life unfolds infinitely full of beauty and promise. It will be lovely to cozy up with a good book in front of a fireplace soon, or to spend the day in flannel pajamas all day long. What joys of winter do you look forward to?

Reminding you to soak in the beauty and find the colors even through the dimming of the days.

May you walk in beauty.