Fall colors arriving in Auburn, CA

It’s About That Time…

Indian summer has finally arrived in northern California – it was a long, extraordinarily HOT wait for the crispy air, crunch of leaves underfoot; colors at the beginning of their descent into eventual death and decay. On our morning break, I walked to a stand of trees in a green space nearby (see pic). I listened to the wind and the leaves as they whispered secrets and stories unknown to humans. Experience nature and it will speak to you in all of its languages; nature has inspired writers to put into words what is felt, seen; you only have to listen, look, and learn.

I haven’t had the desire to write or work on a novel in a long time; poetry, however, has been calling to me. Poetry, for me, is a highly internal/emotional form of writing and expression, perfect for the coming changing of season.

Going In

Autumn is the time of year referred to as Yintang in Chinese medicine – part Yin, part Yang, where the world and everything in it begins the ‘going inward’ process toward TaiYang, or Terminal Yin (winter). It’s the time to feed your mind/body/spirit with quieter activities.

Writing poetry is perfect for mind and spirit; nourishing foods will help “feed” your writing:

“…Autumn …it is a time of harvesting and gathering. Weather turns cooler and we crave warm foods. Nature begins moving inward and downward; leaves fall off trees and plants wither. Nuts and fruits fall to the ground as energies collect in the roots and rhizomes of plants, which are ready to harvest for our fall menu. More root vegetables become available, as well as mushrooms/fungi, which strengthen and nourish digestive fire, allowing us to better “digest” food, thoughts and ideas.

To assist the inward movement of energy, add sour foods to your diet in small amounts, like fermented foods. Put warming, moistening foods on your table: mushrooms, barley, leek, radish, cauliflower, tofu, nut butters, hemp and olive oils, and use warm, invigorating herbs like garlic, sage, savory, thyme, and rosemary.” The Five-Element Guide to Healing with Whole Foods (2016)

Inspiration

The Autumn of Life

Colors red, gold, fiery orange, of forests bright

Fade with time

As, in our youth, once brilliant

We fade into the autumn

Of our lives.

The sweet scent of decay, the crunch and

Crackle beneath my boots

As I amble along the path life has given me.

The autumn of life – – –

Activity fades to quiescence and

The desire for inner stillness

Claims victory over youthful vigor

Now waned.

(© 2022)

My advice? Get outside more = write more – and maybe better and deeper. And don’t forget to FEED your inspiration!

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Dreamer-in-Residence

I’m in one of those reflective moods (again). Every now and then, the modern world gets to me (read: incessant noise) and I must remove myself from the droning, deafening sounds of our modern, so-called civilized society. I crave quietude and solitude so I can hear myself think. And see the stars in the night sky – I found Polaris tonight, twinkling a dull blue in a misty indigo sky.

In these reflective moments, as I meandered the “mean streets” of Midtown Sacramento (and quieter as I strolled in a direction opposite the interstate that cuts it in half), words visited then filled out my thoughts, such as: what are words but one’s daydreams put on paper?

As fellow writers, surely you can identify.

Thinker

I once again find myself craving something different, to move (read: run screaming) away from the status quo (who decided this was so great to begin with?) to find my place, my unique place, in this writing/creative world, a place which belongs only to me (and I to it). It’s a desire to grab that brass ring, the one that’s been just beyond my reach for as long as I can remember. It’s a signal to me that my life is out of balance and I’m still working on how to put it right. Writing helps.

Does this make sense to you? I ask you, how can I/we freely write/create when held in place by burdensome responsibilities so much of the time? Held by the chokehold of corporate America – the dangling of the corporate carrot (climbing the “ladder of success” only to find out someone’s removed the top rungs), learning how to lie with a smile on your face, learning that people are expendable, replaceable (so much for being unique and valued) … the corporate mantras memorized, recited, regurgitated … leading to feeling institutionalized.

How do I/we break free?

My guess is, to write, as a writer must.

If we dream, we must write.

If we write, we must imagine.

If we imagine, we must create.

If we create, we must give a bit

of the best of ourselves to the world.

Dream. Write. Imagine.

Create.

We must not forget; it’s who we are, not just what we do. We can’t deny it, avoid it, or squirrel it away for a rainy day. We must go out there, into the world, with pen (or computer) in hand and blaze our own trails.

Institutions be damned.