Do you see the leaves on the ground?
My first born & second child was a little kid when I started making up this song:
"do you see the leaves on the ground?
leaves on the ground
all around town
do you see the leaves on the ground?
red, golden, green and brown."
She and I would ride around singing the Fall song, connecting with this season of stunning colour and mighty change. Each year Fall offers awareness of the inevitability of letting go as we surrender to darkness (in the northern hemisphere) and embrace (or not) the realities of Autumn.
This year my youngest child is on the back of the bike and my older child rides alongside us
Fall has arrived and I sang again, oh so sweetly:
" do you see the leaves on the ground?"
and in full 4 yr old certainty she said;
"no"
Enter my offering for October...
The leaves are falling, do you see them? The season is shifting, are you noticing? What are you aware of? and beyond that, what do you want to be aware of?
The fall season overflows with opportunities to notice change and practice letting go
This months Radical Care for Self is ...
What are your lines in the sand?
A Practice for Self to Self communication, done at the pace of relating (aka go slow)
take a big breath in and out through the nose.
and again
and again
can you feel your Lungs / chest expand?
can you feel your belly expand?
Are there tears here?
Are there thoughts?
Are there judgments?
Take it slow
What do you notice here?
Whatever is here, offer it regard
"I regard you fear"
"I regard you voice saying this is ridiculous / too hard / will never work"
"I regard you uncertainty"
"I regard you ...... (whatever you have that I could never know)"
take a big breath in and out through the nose.
and again
and again
can you feel your Lungs / chest expand?
can you feel your belly expand?
What is here now?
Is there more?
take it slow
If you are willing, ask your Lungs...
Lungs, what do you want me to know about my limits?
Lungs, have you been trying to tell me something?
take a big breath in and out through the nose.
and again
and again
can you feel your Lungs / chest expand?
can you feel your belly expand?
take it slow
If available to you...
shake your shoulders forward and back (shimmy) to stimulate the Lung channel as you...
take a big breath in and out through the nose.
and again
and again
can you feel your Lungs / chest expand?
can you feel your belly expand?
What boundary wants to be known, if any?
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Fall is the season of the Lungs and Large Intestine.
In Chinese Medicine Theory, the Lung organ includes the anatomical lungs and the nose, sinuses, and skin. The Lung also has an important connection to the Large Intestine, and together the Lung and Large Intestine provide the strength for the Wei Qi, or the protective boundary around our body (just underneath our skin) that is akin to the Western idea of the immune system. When the Lung is strong the voice is clear, the skin is bright, and immunity is sufficient to fight off invading pathogens.
Lung Qi supports clear communication between self and other and between self and self.
Much like Wei Qi is the protective boundary around our bodies, the same can be said for the emotional, physical, energetic and spiritual boundaries that live in each of us. These immaterial boundaries intend to protect our minds, hearts, relationships and communities. Boundary work evolves over time and is rooted in a relationship of clear communication between you and you. All boundaries, are alive, and in that sense all boundaries require care and attention.
The Lungs and Large Intestine are a Metal element and are emotionally associated with grief, sadness, clear communication and order. Metal in the Earth is also an organizer, separating sections and layers of Earth from other sections. The Spirt of the Lungs is the Po and in both body and spirit the Lungs and Large Intestine help us keep things organized with clear communication. When things are out of our control, the metal element wants to come in and tidy everything up.
Grief often rears when boundaries are crossed (plus some other big feelings too!) and the season of Lungs is a great time to reflect and connect with what you want for you, body and soul!
This October, I invite you to practice "What are your lines in the sand?"
and connect with your innermost boundaries asking for regard.
Clear communication originates from the relationship I have with myself. If I am not clear on what my preferences, standards and boundaries are I am not able to assert, relate or be with much outside of myself, as I am still entangled in miscommunication between me and me.
I have been out of sync, many times and still able to function and make life.... the thing is, when I am clearly connected to self the life I make is way better, way more functional, way more engaged and aligned and in healthy relation with me, with you and with the world.
The Fall is a season of profound opportunity to get clear in your relationship with your self, to attend to grief, to reflect and release what no longer serves and to notice the leaves falling.
"Do you see the leaves on the ground, red, golden, green and brown?"
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