Cocooning.
Days are shorter, nights are cooler, air is crisp. I don't know if its intrinsic to us all, but I feel the desire to stay home, rug up, knit or read, sleep more, and allow space for contemplation and thinking.
We were forced into a rest and isolation in the days of the pandemic, and now it seems easier to do. In fact, I heard a lady talking at the shops recently about how hard it is to make herself go out these days, so used to her own space and the cosy nest she has created at home.
Creation has built-in rhythms for rest. Plants have a natural cycle of production that includes a season of dormancy. Bees and ants harvest in specific periods. Bears have a hibernation schedule.
We humans though, have the ability to work and produce outside of the created order.
For instance, the creation of electric light has made it possible for us to ignore the natural rhythm of the sun. We can work until the early hours of the morning if we want.
But I wonder if that's a good thing?
The drive to do more, have more, be more, succeed more, add more, is not how our animal friends are.
Many living things—including plants, animals, and humans—have circadian rhythms, which are tailored to life on earth and the changes that occur as the planet rotates on its axis. Every 24 hours, predictable shifts in light and temperature take place. Circadian rhythms help living things respond to changes in their environment in ways that conserve energy, help them find food, and allow them to grow and heal.
Rick used to say all the time, "There's no rest for the wicked." One of those slang phrases he picked up growing up in rural NSW, that farmers bandied about when catching up at the silos on a grain delivery, or over a beer after weekend cricket. It was a dry joke, simply meaning they never had time to rest.
Sadly, it's often illness or injury that will eventually stop us. Instead of heeding the quiet voice telling us to slow down, an accident or health scare will be the trigger for pulling up.
After the recent Hawkesbury expo, Rick was pretty ill. He never complains or takes days off, but he was laid pretty low by a combination of the flu virus and complete exhaustion.
He's turned a corner this week, firing on about 70% of his cylinders, but I'm hoping that the time of forced rest will help him understand he is not superhuman!!
Maybe this time of year has you doing some introspection by the fire too?
If you have been unwell, we send our best thoughts and prayers for your healing.
Blessings always
Shani
x
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