Autumn: The season to slow down

Autumn has always been my favorite season. It has the coziest decor, the most delicious baking recipes, the perfect classic movies, and of course, it gives me a reason to have my annual rewatch of Gilmore Girls (Team Logan, always).

More than all of that, it’s the most nostalgic time of the year for me, even more than Christmas. I find myself reminiscing on all my childhood fall memories of the leaves changing into bright reds and yellows and oranges, of crisp morning air, of my mom baking pumpkin seeds and sugar cookies, of pumpkin patches and fall festivals. This nostalgic ache has me leafing backwards in my mind, searching for myself in piles of crispy leaves and old photographs. I think that is why so many of us keep up with traditions — to grasp onto those sweet, syrupy feelings of childhood.

When the first few days of autumn roll around, the cooler mornings feel like a new beginning is right on the horizon. The hot, sticky summer has had it’s time of vacations, swimming, barbecues, and sun-kissed cheeks. Frankly, even before the official start of fall, by the time September 1st rolls around, I’ve had enough of sweating every time I go outside, sun burns, and getting eaten by mosquitoes. And while spring is often associated with renewals and fresh starts, doesn’t the growth really start so much further back than that first sprout? Isn’t the foundation of growth in the harvest?

I’ve come to learn and appreciate how important each season is and how many lessons can be learned from aligning yourself with the cyclical timing of nature. I appreciate the other seasons for all they have to offer, but nothing is quite as sweet as slowing down in autumn.

Harvesting growth and slowing down

Autumn is filled with many moments that mark time in nature, including the Harvest Moon and Autumnal Equinox.

This year’s Harvest Moon has come and gone already, as it typically occurs in September close to the Autumnal Equinox. For several evenings, this moonrise comes soon after sunset. This results in an abundance of bright moonlight early in the evening, which was a traditional aid to farmers and crews harvesting their summer-grown crops [1]. Many cultures celebrate through festivals, and it is often seen as a time to honor nature’s abundance and the way humans and nature are intertwined.

The Autumnal Equinox typically falls around September 22nd or 23rd in the northern hemisphere, which marks the beginning of autumn. The equinox — Latin for “equal night” — occurs when the sun is exactly above the equator, and day and night are of equal length. From that day on until winter solstice, the days become shorter and nights become longer.

Don’t get me wrong, I am not a fan of shorter, darker days at all. It’s hard to not fall into a funk or seasonal depression when it’s already dark at dinner time. But you can’t change the seasons; you can only go with them and grow with them.

These seasonal events give us such an important reminder that is often drowned out by the restlessness and hustle of human-made schedules. We put emphasis on having one last productive burst of energy before the holidays and say things like “You have to finish the year strong!” as if life is one long race where we need to get to the finish line as soon as possible. We try to make up for the ways we feel we’ve fallen short over the past nine months. Maybe you thought you’d hit that fitness goal or started on that business idea or developed better habits. And when you throw in the insanity of the holiday season, it’s no surprise that most of us want to hibernate before New Year’s Day even happens. In fact, nearly nine in ten U.S. adults say that something causes them stress in the holiday season [2]. I think a lot of that stress builds up long before December.

There are many more layers to all of this, but really what I’m getting at is — when you slow down before you push yourself into overdrive, you can save yourself a lot of exhaustion and burnout in the long run. It’s the same concept as if you don’t take a break because you have too much to do, you usually end up getting sick anyways because your body is demanding you rest. You end up having to delegate and move things off your plate, whether you planned to or not. The rest has to happen one way or another. It’s better to take it and lean in before your body, heart, and mind shut down on you. And for the record, there is no finish line at the end of the year. You are not “behind.” You don’t need to make up for “falling short.” You are right on time, just like the seasons that flow seamlessly through the year.

In so many ways, autumn tells us this. As the leaves fall to the ground one by one and the sun sets earlier and earlier each day, the universe whispers to us to slow our rhythms too. It’s so much more than buying pumpkin-flavored treats and decorating and swapping your wardrobe for all the chunky sweaters and boots. It’s a beautiful transitional time to prepare for the colder months, to switch gears, and to really give yourself some much needed love and care.

Preparing to Winter

Before we know it, winter will be right around the corner. Animals spend all of autumn preparing for winter. They may grow heavier coats, eat more, or slow their metabolisms to ready themselves for hibernation or surviving the cold. Whether we realize it or not, humans need to prepare too.

I’m not saying that we need to start eating more to prepare for the cold or stock up on food to get us through to spring. Not at all. But winter deeply affects humans whether we want it to or not. Seasonal affective disorder (SAD) affects around 10 million Americans, which is a form of depression that lasts from late fall to early spring [3]. Those shorter and darker days that are coming cause a drop in serotonin — which regulates our moods — and an earlier release of melatonin — which triggers our sleep response. These seemingly small shifts can wreak havoc, resulting in sluggishness, feeling groggy, or depression symptoms.

SAD finds me one way or another during the winter. As someone who has experienced both seasonal and regular depression, it’s easy to feel like there’s something wrong with you. It’s easy to let the sadness take over (no pun intended) until the sun is shining longer again. But then I discovered the book Wintering: The Power of Rest and Retreat in Difficult Times by Katherine May. I’ll go into a deeper dive on this book when winter is actually approaching, but I’m currently re-reading this one and feel it’s relevant to autumn as well.

Wintering essentially focuses on the power of rest and retreat in difficult times. The author doesn’t confine the term “wintering” to just the cold months of the year; rather she explores how wintering can happen at any time in the face of unforeseen circumstances like abrupt illness, the death of a loved one, a break-up, job loss, etc. Wintering is what happens when your life feels like it’s derailing, and instead of letting it consume you, you endure and embrace the opportunities it has to offer.

The practices and stories discussed in this book deeply resonate with me in the autumn and winter months. It has helped me to be gentler and kinder to myself when those sluggish and sad feelings start to seep in. It has helped to realize that I can prepare for the cold (both literally and metaphorically) in many ways, but mainly in slowing and giving myself plenty of opportunities to rest and recharge.

Being gentle with yourself is one of the bravest things you can do. Soon autumn will become winter which will become spring which will become summer. We cycle through so many feelings and experiences just as nature cycles through the seasons. Ask yourself: What can this season teach me? Where can I pause for reflection? How can I slow down this autumn?

Sources:

1. Almanac. “What is the Harvest Moon?, https://www.almanac.com/what-harvest-moon.” Accessed October 4, 2024.

2. American Psychological Association. “Even a joyous holiday season can cause stress for most Americans, https://www.apa.org/news/press/releases/2023/11/holiday-season-stress.” Accessed October 4, 2024.

3. Boston University. “Seasonal Affective Disorder Impacts 10 Million Americans. Are You One of Them?, https://www.bu.edu/articles/2019/seasonal-affective-disorder/.” Accessed October 4, 2024.