Autumn falls with cool
Mornings and shorter days. Hail
The turn of seasons!
Hello Friends of Flying Needle!
Happy Cold Dew!
- third autumnal solar node -
Hope this finds you well during these interesting times!
Seasonal Musings & Reflections
I turned 52 on September 5th. Somehow this strikes me in way that turning 50 did not. On the one hand, it feels like I have crossed a threshold. On the other it feels like completely uneventful. And held between the two is awe and wonder that I am here at all.As I sit contemplating these feelings, I am struck again by something which may sound strange since this newsletter is fundamentally about time as experienced through seasonal cycles:I find time to be a total mystery.And there is no time of the year that brings this into my awareness as robustly as my birthday.
A few delightfully perplexing riddles from the temporal mystery bouquet are:
How does time pass if we are always in the present?
Is the self in the present the self from the past, and the self of the future?If so, how? If not who and what are we?
Far wiser and more articulate folks have written and rapped about these questions extensively, so I will spare you my ramblings. But, if you haven't contemplated these koans lately, or at all, I invite you to sit with them for a cup of tea on a beautiful September morning. If you'd like to share your thoughts with me I'd love to know what you discover.
Dawn comes later, dusk comes earlier. Early sunlight has begun to shift towards the tawny and metallic. Here in the North Carolina Piedmont, mornings have been considerable cooler which is fitting as we enter the solar node - Cold Dew.
We see black eyed Susan, blanket flower, boneset, milkweed, and passion flower blooming. Ragweed and grass pollen abound. School is back in session which transforms Chapel Hill from being a quiet town to one thronged with college and graduate students. It's our most robust semi-annual migratory pattern.
Madalena, my 14 year old daughter, has begun 9th grade at The Hawbridge School in Saxapahaw. We're only a few weeks in but she has been loving it. For a kid that has never enjoyed school, this is the best birthday gift I could possibly receive.I am grateful for the abundance of my life during these challenging times – great friends, wonderful teachers, and nourishing practices.I am grateful to have meaningful work that allows me to be of service to folks who need support. And, I am grateful for this space to share these thoughts with all of you today.
May your Autumn days be filled with beauty, mystery, and friendship!
May you and your kin feel both rooted and free!
May we walk in gratitude with our Ancestors!
May all being and becoming receive nourishment!
Gratitude to all
Ancestors for another
Lap around the sun!
It is my sincere hope that you have found something of use in these words.
If you know folks who you feel would enjoy this newsletter, please forward it their way! Thank you!
Wishing you and all your relations well-being and good medicine!
With gratitude,
Taran
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