There is a Season: Suggestions for Turning towards Autumn

A new season is coming. Summer is nearly over, and depending on where you live, the leaves will soon turn color and the temperatures become cooler. I currently live in the southern part of the U.S., so the cooler weather won’t come until October at the earliest. However, I grew up in the Midwest and still associate September as the beginning of autumn. School began the Tuesday after Labor Day and in anticipation of the new season, I would get some new clothes and school supplies. My friends and I would begin talking about new classes and activities. Cool, brisk autumn days take me back to that feeling of renewal and optimism about the future.

Many of us make plans for summer, perhaps travel or visiting friends. We may have house and garden projects planned, confident we could finish them all in the summer. Did you intend to declutter your closets? Organize the garage? Create a vegetable garden? Now that summer is coming to a close, you realize that you didn’t get as much done as you wished. I think we often exaggerate the amount of free time we have in our summers, reminiscent of our school days with a long summer vacation.

It’s a new season! There’s no law that says we have to wait until January 1 to start fresh. September also feels like a new beginning. Gretchen Rubin suggests on her podcast that we take Labor Day (first Monday of September in the U.S.) to reflect on our work lives. Labor Day could be used as a time to think how to make our jobs happier and more productive. It may also be time to consider changing jobs and how to begin that process. One article discusses making resolutions in September and gives readers a few ideas, for example, learning a new skill or changing up an exercise routine. Another calls September “the new January,” suggesting that the four months until January are more manageable than an entire year, so goals are more achievable.

Of course, we don’t need to wait for a new year or season to make goals or explore new interests. Ideally, we would reflect on our professional and personal life continually throughout the year and consider what we need or want to add to our life. Realistically, though, most of us don’t make time for that, so the beginning of a season is a good reminder to stop and reflect. Having gone to school for an eternity (almost), I still think in terms of the academic year. For me, September is the start of a new semester, so I’m planning to learn something new. I have a few ideas but haven’t settled on one quite yet. Here are some suggestions to consider:

Take a class

Learn a new skill

Learn a new subject

Start a new habit

Declutter and organize one room a month

Change or organize your wardrobe

Try a capsule wardrobe like Project 333

Change something at work

Learn a new job skill

Evaluate your job situation

Add more vegetables to your diet

Try out a new sport

Commit to practicing meditation

Begin a blog or journal

Create a photography journal

It doesn’t really matter what we learn or change or add to our life as long as it is something that brings us value. It could be something useful like learning computer skills or something for your eyes only like beginning a journal. It could be something to help others like learning CPR or something that helps only ourselves like learning yoga poses. Some may ask why do anything new at all? What’s the point? My response is that to live an intentional, meaningful life, we need to reflect and examine how and why we live as we do. It’s not good enough to live with the status quo. We need to move forward, even if slowly with small steps. So as the last season of the year begins, take a little time and think it over. What do you want to add to your life?