“Every new beginning comes from some other beginning’s end.” -Semisonic
Fall often feels like a time of endings. We begin to pack up and prepare so many areas of our life for winter. My husband, Chris, and I have been spending time in our gardens, preparing them for the change of seasons…something we do every year, and something we love to do together. As we move from one area of the garden to the next, we eventually find ourselves together at the grapevine. Reaching underneath the foliage, uncovering just the right places to trim, we begin in the creative silence monotonous projects such as this offer…and then, almost out of nowhere, a conversation springs to life.
With each vine we cut, we notice how tightly it has held onto other shrubs. We nibble on leftover grapes, grateful for a little taste of the feast the birds have been enjoying. And then almost as naturally as cutting the vines, I find myself weaving the cuttings into wreaths.
I Love moments like those…the ones when my mind gets lost in a repetitive project and the creative space for inspiration just happens.
With each wreath I wove, my mind wandered and I began to realize this project was becoming a beautiful metaphor for the fall journey inward. By trimming back the vines that pull energy from the core of the plant, I began to see how there are times I also need to trim back what is pulling my attention and energy away from my core…the pile of books I’m no longer interested in, surfing through facebook or watching movies online.
By trimming back some of the things that distract us from our core, we create space for new growth.
I began to see how in creating wreaths I was honoring the life, fullness, and fruit each vine offered. Each wreath was an expression of the wholeness of life. A full cycle. A beginning that has come to it’s natural end. By allowing that cycle to end with honor, grace and ease we create space for new growth…for the next beginning.
“to make an end is to make a beginning. The end is where we start from.” ~T.S. Eliot
I invite you to reflect this week on what is ready to be trimmed from your own life in order to create space for new growth. What are the things you allow to interfere with your journey inward? How can you begin to trim back those vines of distraction so you may be fully present at your core? And how can you honor those endings?
Shine Brightly,
Lori A Andrus
Journey Jewels
Lori A Andrus 