Whispers Of Autumn
Whispers Of Autumn
Looking through nature's eyes to perceive and fully access the abundant nourishment autumn offers for the body, mind and soul.
“I hope I can be the autumn leaf, who looked at the sky and lived. And when it was time to leave, gracefully it knew life was a gift.” – Dodinsky
The leaves, Monarchs, Asters and Golden Rod are whispering to me of the promise of autumn.
The gleaming dew drops that descend from the heavens on the increasingly crisp mornings become suspended in the morning light on spider’s webs.. hanging like crystal pearls, illuminating worlds within worlds and speaking to me of the sacred geometry woven into all things..
Autumn is a time when the Mother Earth recites poetry for the senses spoken in a language of color, movement, tastes and sounds.
Autumn is the preceder of the forest’s long awaited rest and the invoker of acceptance in letting go of that which no longer serves us. It is a time when we are invited to have the faith to feel safe in the knowing we can rely on Mother Earth's cycles if we plant seeds, tend trees and invest in her living economy in other ways.
If the Earth laughs in flowers than I believe she sighs in relief with colorful leaves on a crisp autumn breeze.
This time of year I am often super busy using all my spare time to preserve our garden harvests (and seasonal farmers market abundances) for winter..
..but a wise person taught me that nourishing one's soul is just as important as nourishing one's body. So while I do see it as extremely important to prioritize preserving seasonal abundances (especially now) I also strive to carve a bit of time out of each of my work days (whether it be on a lunch break or in early morning before I start) to nurture my spirit by appreciating all the beauty that Mother Earth shares.
In a way taking pictures of autumn colors is my way of 'preserving food for the soul', but as with all forms of preservation, there is always something lost of the essence in the process.
Thus nourishment (whether it be for the body or the soul) is (whenever possible) best enjoyed in the moment in its most potent state.
Aside from nourishment for the eyes and body, there is also much wisdom to be harvested from paying attention to the grace and balance of mother earth and her cycles. In autumn I am reminded of the value of acceptance, surrender, trust and selflessness.
As I watch the leaves fall from the tree branches, dancing their way back to the earth from where they once came, I see true balance and surrender. The trees and plants giving back to the earth that sustains them ..trusting that when spring comes.. they will be provided with all they need to bloom and enjoy their time in the sun again.
As we strive to engage in social permaculture perhaps we could benefit from taking a step back to observe the wisdom that larger patterns in nature (such as the seasons) can offer us. In doing so we are then able to emulate facets of these larger cycles of nature in order to embody grace, avoid stress, align with abundance, and make the way for personal growth and the improvement of our society as a whole.
Humans tend to want to control, rather than to surrender to natural cycles and move with the natural flow. If we align with the forces, cycles and patterns that make up the natural rhythms of the ecosystem and climate where we live we can be open to receiving the abundance that nature is always offering us (and all other beings we share this earth with). Knowing when to put in the hard work to plant seeds and then let go, have patience, and trust in the knowing that good things are coming our way is moving out of the way of the universe and allowing abundance and joy to flow in our direction.
This oak leaf has not even hit the ground and yet its inevitable journey to return back to the Earth from once it came has already begun. When I observe instances like this on the edges between seasons it reinforces my believe that trees/plants can teach us a lot about grace, acceptance, trust, generosity, symbiosis and surrendering to what is.
In the autumn trees give all they have stored up over the summer in an act of selflessness and love.
Another lens through which I view this time of year is to see Autumn as a celebration of the marriage of the seasons.
Mother Earth throws brightly colored confetti in the air to honor the sacred promise that autumn made to spring. Autumn gives all he has in an act of selflessness and love and spring trusts that the leaves will nourish the soils, protect the seeds and ensure that new life can spring forth once more when the time is right.
It is a time when Mother Earth invites us to celebrate the beauty of each moment for each one is unrepeatable and all things must come to an end.
Her cyclical seasons and regenerative rhythms also affirm the truth that what we perceive as an 'end' is really just an invitation for a new beginning.
She offers us poetry for the senses to inspire our imaginations and help us perceive the beauty in surrendering to and trusting the natural rhythms of life.
Speaking of trusting and aligning with the natural rhythms of Mother Earth’s cycles, this is the time of year when she does much of her seed saving. This is the time when countless plants send out their precious seeds onto the wind and gift them wrapped in food to countless animals to be deposited. After they find their way to the ground Mother Earth lovingly covers these seeds in a blanket of leaves to protect and nurture the living embryos held within.
Layering these decomposing leaves and other organic matter on top of the seeds she creates diverse Soil Seed Banks in which the seeds are simultaneously protected from the elements that may decrease their viability, while still allowing the seeds to be stratified by the galvanizing cold of winter and also being housed in a medium filled with bioavailable nutrients due to the work of the soil organisms breaking down the decomposing leaves. We can emulate this process in our garden and create self sowing raised beds that provide over flowing abundances of food and medicine with very little work if we plan ahead. Thus, Autumn is also a time when we are invited to emulate nature and save seeds.
For me, Saving seeds always provides me food for the soul but this is especially so with Holy Basil (aka "Tulsi"). As one rubs the seed pods together in one's hands to separate the seeds from the chaff a rich aroma of cloves, mint and a touch of licorice fills the air.
This poetry for the senses is almost as nourishing as the knowing I will be able to share seeds enabling many (including myself) to be able cultivate an abundance of this healing plant in the future, providing for native pollinators all over, offering delicious tea to humans, inspiration for creativity in the kitchen, medicine for the body, peace for the mind and food for many souls.
Such is the power of saving heirloom seeds and investing in the living economy of the Earth with our hands and our hearts. This simple act is an investment that provides exponential gifts in one's life.
Another important expression of the wisdom we are offered in the fall is gifted to us by our winged and four legged elder species (such as the honeybees, woodpeckers and the squirrels and others) which fastidiously and diligently collect seasonal abundances of food and store them for the winter (so they do not find themselves in a tough spot facing a food shortage when their usual sources of food are not available). This wisdom is always helpful to apply in our annual rhythms but I sense that it is especially imperative in our present situation.
For data and info on why I think applying that wisdom which is offered to us by our four legged and winged elder species is especially imperative now:
- https://www.corbettreport.com/up-next-the-collapse-of-the-food-supply-chain/
- https://farmersfootprint.us/2020/04/07/seeds/?fbclid=IwAR2g3D-PbV48J_IDPtF4rZfPpowUP6nvsuVREGZy9iY8qTI9IYwaHuJXyvs
- https://navdanyainternational.org/the-corporate-push-for-synthetic-foods-false-solutions-that-endanger-our-health-and-damage-the-planet/
- https://www.corbettreport.com/were-all-sri-lankan-farmers-now/
- https://seedfreedom.info/campaign/seed-satyagraha-civil-disobedience-to-end-seed-slavery/?fbclid=iwar0ptq0ttfxlpgfp348mlweej-cjx0qyfwwoqg7qf07_bwjnfjcyhbqtlao
- https://off-guardian.org/2022/07/28/from-bill-gates-to-the-great-refusal-farmers-on-the-frontline/?fbclid=IwAR36ASKCCtrw23c_MCdbm-Jo-ycs4bAJinprfjt70yjQoOuVs1j0giGn6VM
-https://tnc.news/2022/11/17/mississauga-food-bank/
- https://www.corbettreport.com/ice-age-farming-solutionswatch-video/
Considering all of that, I hope you are embracing the wisdom offered to us by our elder species in autumn and taking time to preserve seasonal abundances for the winter.
Another window we are offered to look through to perceive this world and access it’s intrinsic abundance through seeing with nature’s eyes can be found when you walk around outside in an area with diverse mature trees growing in late autumn and look down at your feet.
What do you see in the picture above? Is it dirty messy debris tarnishing a well groomed lawn? Or is it a fleeting expression of beauty, generosity and trust gifted to us by mother earth... a precious resource for soil building and appreciating poetry for the eyes written in colors on the wind?
The answer depends on the relationship you choose to have with Mother Earth and how you choose to perceive her.
I see many where I live getting all worked up about leaves on the ground in their yard and paying people to pick them up and get rid of them. This kind of adversarial and counterproductive relationship with nature is symbolic of the times and dominant culture we live in... nature offers abundance and solutions... humans fight, disrupt, and stress/complain about natural cycles.. and create artificial scarcity, misery and problems in the process.
The images below offer two different potential perspectives on a bunch of items I picked up from a back yard.
Or is it..
When we take a step back from our modern day programming and instead look at these items through the eyes of the people who are indigenous to these lands and came to know the plants in an intimate and symbiotic way (because their life depended on it) it becomes clear that these items are in fact valuable resources and hold much potential. Many of these items are present in our yards and on our properties and are often discarded rather than seen as the valuable gifts they are.
As I said above, forests create 'soil seed banks' that are self perpetuating, self regenerating and provide exponential abundance. This abundance is offered in the form of food, medicine, building materials, shelter, beauty and a source of inspiration (and more). The forest speaks to us in a way beyond words and says "If you are sick, I have a full medicine cabinet ..and you can have what you need, if you are hungry.. my pantry is always open to you ..all i ask is that you pay attention, respect me and offer something in return for the gifts I share with you".
If we practice the way of The Honorable Harvest, we can interact with the forest in a way that honors, regenerates and respects what we are offered so the gifts can continue to flow. I would like to reiterate that foraging should always be embarked upon with respect, reverence and reciprocity.
Beyond foraging for what we need (and giving back to the forest in some way) we can also emulate the elegant, prolific and resilient system that is a forest in our garden spaces to create our own 'soil seed banks' (that provide abundance in food, medicine and beauty). Self-seeding multilayered gardens that fertilize themselves and protect their own water retention are attainable to the one who sees the forest as a teacher.
Autumn Alchemy
One of the things I love to do in the fall is use ancient knowledge to 'transmute' some of the beauty and abundance of autumn leaves (that are usually mostly food for the soil and the soul) into medicine for the mind and body!
This can be accomplished via collecting some Ginkgo Biloba leaves from a mature tree, drying them and soaking them in a 45% alcohol solution in order to extract the medicinal compounds and make a tincture.
Ginkgo leaf extract has an unusually large number of medicinally active compounds. These include terpene trilactones such as ginkgolides A, B, C and J as well as various bilobalides. Additional components of ginkgo extract include flavonoid glycosides such as myricetin and quercetin. The plant also contains alkylphenols, biflavones, phenolic acids, polyprenols and proanthocyanidins. Specific compounds in gingko include 4-O-methylpyridoxine and 6-hydroxykynurenic acid.
According to current research, ginkgo biloba benefits include improved cognitive function (Increases absorption of oxygen and glucose in the brain), positive mood, improved blood vessel health (it fights hardening of the arteries and reduces plaque build-up), increased energy, increased stamina/endurance, improved memory and improved respiratory function.
Ginkgo biloba also boosts immune system function and muscle recovery by reducing mitochondrial damage and reducing oxidative stress. Due to it's potent antioxidant content, ginkgo biloba helps with eliminating toxins from the body and also inhibits the action of PAF, a leading cause of stroke.
Today I am feeling grateful that Mother Earth offers us a full medicine cabinet for the mind, body and soul when we learn to care for, respect and pay attention to to the plants.
I hope you have enjoyed this exploration of several expressions of the wisdom and abundant nourishment that autumn shares will us all.
Despite all the insanity going on in the human world right now, I invite you to take time each day to embrace the beauty each season offers us.. take a moment to appreciate the little things.. like a snowflake, each moment is unique and it is one we will never get back. Keep on speaking the truth and standing up for those who cannot defend themselves but take time to nurture your spirit as well. Balance is important... we can be both peaceful warriors and autumn leaf appreciators... we can stand up to tyranny (embracing food and health sovereignty to starve the corporate parasites) while also taking time to feel gratitude for the poetry for the senses offered to us by the beyond human world.
Keep sowing those seeds of love, hope, courage and grace on the brisk autumn breeze.. if enough of us do, these seeds will persevere through the winter, take root and become a garden of hope, resilience, truth, healing and unity when the time is right.
ps - All of the photography shared above are pictures I took myself in previous years. For those that are interested, I will be offering canvas prints and other additional offerings such as what I am calling “photographic spagyric alchemy packages” (more on this later) at some time in the future through my (not-yet constructed) website which will have the URL Naturesheartbeat.com
What a beautiful essay, Gavin! You weave so many threads together on nature, geopolitics, homeopathy, color. I showed my kimchi-making daughter your garden kimchi and she said, ooooh! I also loved the spiderweb beginning in the leaf, the frozen rose, and the tree of life.
My oldest daughter is getting married in Nov and we're hoping the persimmon tree will blaze its best colors for decorations. One friend's gathering giant pine cones to line the burlap path on the covered bridge to the wedding arch. Another has dried strings of orange slices. And I already told you about the cider-making fiance. I'm going to send this to her with your phrase:
"Another lens through which I view this time of year is to see Autumn as a celebration of the marriage of the seasons. Mother Earth throws brightly colored confetti in the air to honor the sacred promise that autumn made to spring. Autumn gives all he has in an act of selflessness and love and spring trusts that the leaves will nourish the soils, protect the seeds and ensure that new life can spring forth once more when the time is right."
And thanks for reminding me how much I love James Corbett and Navdanya. And pounding holy basil with medicinal garlic and the treasure of pine nuts. And drying herbs and rubbing them through a mesh screen--olfactory heaven.