It’s finally autumn. I’ve waited for it all summer long. I’m an autumn girl. I love everything about the season; the leaves changing, the temperatures dropping, the fog rolling in for my morning walk, the smells and the fragrances of the season. Somewhere in my heart, I am always, secretly, longing for the slower, cooler, darker days of autumn. But I also believe it isn’t simply or solely due to the seasonal change the equinox brings. There is a restorative rest that comes to us in the fall. But it’s up to us to embrace it.
It’s our tangible opportunity to slow…
Spring is a season of growth and new birth. The birds nest, the flowers bloom, the trees begin filling with tiny green buds. It is a beautiful time for new beginnings. But autumn is also beautiful in its own right. It offers us a recognizable shift, and whispers, “It’s okay to slow down.”
The days are shorter, the nights roll in like a welcomed friend. And while we love lingering away the hours poolside or spending the day at the lake, or vacationing to beaches and mountain peaks, there is a welcome slowness to autumn. Autumn is relief from the heat; it’s slow walks after dinner to catch the sunset. Autumn is cozy knit sweaters and wooly socks.
Autumn is a warm cup of tea on a crisp fall morning. It’s lighting the candles a little longer, and lingering over good conversation around the fire pit with good friends and great neighbors. Autumn offers us restorative rest in simple form. It’s like a long slow exhale after a busy (and brutally hot) summer.
It’s when we lean into rest…
I’ve had conversations with so many people lately who feel a hurriedness they can’t seem to catch up from. That feeling is when we need most to lean into restorative rest. Restorative rest brings a new sense of energy; energy that can carry us through the difficult things, the long-term things, the ‘I’m barely holding on’ things.
I have always struggled with rest. It seems like I have to be sick to feel as if I have earned the right to rest. But being sick isn’t the same as rest; the rest that comes from sickness is a healing rest. I believe what we need to lean into is seasons of restorative rest: Seasons where we embrace the rhythms of life with softness, where we find gratitude in the simple things, and where we allow ourselves to linger a little longer over the goodness of life.
Restorative rest allows us to exhale…
Recently, we took a short trip to the mountains. Both of our grown children were able to take time from work to go with us. We hiked, we picnicked, we ate chili in our hotel room. The moments weren’t packed in like vacations when they were smaller. We found ourselves simply spending time together. There were board game nights and movies we’ve seen a thousand times. We played mini-golf and hiked in the rain.
Those three days were restorative rest. Restorative rest allows us to exhale from life, but it does so much more. It breathes new breath into us, as well. We come out feeling a renewed strength to get through the next thing, face the next challenge, and maybe make decisions we didn’t know how to make before.
Restorative rest stays with us for longer than regular rest. It’s something we can reflect on and borrow strength from in the days to come; something we can come back to again and again when we need it.
We simply have to know where to look…
For me, restorative rest comes from time spent with those I love most. It certainly comes from all the things we experienced this past week; the hikes in the rain, the time spent playing board games and watching movies. But more than that, it comes from a sense of simply being.
When was the last time you just….were. You weren’t working, or thinking, or planning, or preparing. When was the last time you simply enjoyed your coffee without feeling the pressure and the push to do the next thing?
Sometimes it comes from a long bath at the end of the day. No phones, no devices, just warm water, some bath salts, and a moment to rest.
Maybe it’s getting lost in a good book. A real page-turner. Literally. A good, old fashioned, printed book. No notifications, no reminders, no dinging.
Our central nervous systems need rest…
This week, whatever your week holds, I encourage you to find a few stolen moments to embrace restorative rest. You don’t have to get out of town or travel to a destination to find it. Simply find a moment and embrace it.
Matthew 11:28 “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest”.
xo, Billie
Restorative Rest: How it heals anxiety and trauma: https://www.nourishedwellnessgroup.com/blog/restorative-rest-ca7kt
The Courage to Rest: https://forwardourmail.com/the-courage-to-rest/
