I suppose that’s where I find myself these days, somewhere between summer and winter.
I’m no longer the woman I was when life felt like an endless summer, when there was always another child to raise, another goal to chase, another hill to climb.
But I’m not ready for winter either.
Maybe that’s what October is trying to teach me. There is beauty in the season between seasons, just as there is beauty in every season of life.
We don’t always recognize that we’re entering a new season until we’re already there. Sometimes we spend so much time preparing for the next one that we forget to appreciate the one we’re actually living.
I’ve done that more times than I care to admit, looking ahead, wondering what was coming next, instead of pausing long enough to notice what was happening right in front of me.
Perhaps that’s what I’m learning now. I don’t have to have all the answers about what comes next. I don’t need to rush toward the next chapter simply because the current one is changing.
I can pause here.
I can look around.
I can be grateful.
Summer had its purpose. Winter will have its purpose, too. But October reminds me that this season deserves to be noticed, embraced, and lived fully, not just endured on the way to something else.
Maybe that’s why I find something comforting about the changing leaves. They don’t fight the change. They don’t cling to what they were. They simply let go when the time comes.
There is something beautiful about that kind of trust.
“There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under the heavens.” — Ecclesiastes 3:1 (NIV)
Somewhere between summer and winter, I think I’m learning that the in-between isn’t something to hurry through.
It is a season of its own.
And maybe, just maybe, it is one worth savoring.
From Heart to Heritage
I absolutely needed and love this, Mary. The analogy of how the leaves don’t find change spoke to me the most. Time should teach us that, but when something new slams an aging body it leaves us yearning for those endless summers of youthful vigor. Anyways, thanks for the inspiring words. Blessings
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Thank you so much, Sue! I love how you put it, “yearning for those endless summers.” Funny timing, because I just had surgery today, and I’d happily trade a little of that youthful vigor for a faster recovery! My body definitely has its own calendar. Praying that everything flows freely and the healing comes quickly. I’m so glad my post found you right where you needed them. Blessings to you, too!
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Will pray for no complications and that your recovery goes smoothly.
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Thank you sweet, Sue. On the mend 🙏🏼
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Amen to this: “We don’t always recognize that we’re entering a new season until we’re already there. Sometimes we spend so much time preparing for the next one that we forget to appreciate the one we’re actually living.”
It’s one of the reasons we need to appreciate each day and take nothing for granted.
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Absolutely, Pete! Every day is a gift, and we never know what tomorrow may bring.
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This entire post is so well said, Mary. Your words resonated with me regarding the pause. Truly absorbing the present… the in-between seasons. Beautiful.
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Thank you so much! I love how you put it, “absorbing the present.” That’s exactly what I’m trying to learn to do. I’ve spent too many seasons looking ahead, so I’m grateful these words found you right where you needed them. Wishing you a beautiful, unhurried October.
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🧡
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I love your analogy with the fall leaves which just let go. That is a remarkable kind of trust. I can see in my own life a desire to cling to what I think I don’t want to lose without anticipating what even having it has meant. Not clinging to what we are, but letting go of image management and allowing God to create our identity. Now. In this time. Today. Not tomorrow. Well done, Mar!
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Thank you, Dayle! “Allowing God to create our identity” is such a beautiful way to put it. And you’re right that it’s about today, not tomorrow. That’s the gift of this in-between season. Thank you for such a thoughtful reflection. God bless you!
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You have a way with words
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Thanks Little Bro
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