"The breeze scratched the sidewalk with crusty leaves and whispered to Ryan that nothing good would come from the evening. The wind breathed and hissed the harsh message reminding him of his own intense season. Winter's prerequisite chill bled through the trees with an omen of death that refused to be contained to Julie Mathis' bedroom. A woodwind chime bellowed a mysterious hollow symphony that he swore was a witch doctor standing to his right conjuring up the night's tragedy. Any other night it would have been pleasant to smell the fresh air and feel its confidence that winter soon approached; but that night, nothing was right. He shivered."

The chilling words from the crime thriller, Unaware, paint one picture of how autumn can evoke intense emotions, though not always quite so threatening. In fact, many, like me, find the mild temperatures and changing landscape an invitation to reflect on days gone by and the desires of the future. I have no scientific explanation for this, only a shot-in-the-dark theory that is good enough for me. The earth's hesitation before everything rests under the winter snow draws us to consider our unrealized dreams and sentiment—a deep breath before the ridding of old. It's an interconnection with energy and life itself at the roots.

Busy by Nature

All of nature is busy at the crossroad of the seasons. The squirrels rush to horde their winter's keep while we humans find cleaning, redecorating, business planning, and shopping a "must do" before cold weather hits. Of course, you can look at the busyness as just the way we get things done; I choose rather to think of this almost choreographed display of preparation a sign of yearning for something that we didn't quite accomplish the year before. I always want to organize the family photos that are haphazardly kept in several tubs and drawers around the house. How many times have you said or felt, "The house didn't look the way I wanted at the holidays," or "I wanted to lose that five pounds but didn't," or "My business didn't hit the goal I expected." It's the striving that makes us feel like we're accomplishing something of worth, but it can be our downfall as well. Hello stress.

The Sentimental Pause

The worst thing we can do is not allow ourselves the time to understand what our deepest needs are. In all of that busy clutter is a dream, a goal, a fantasy of something that we want and desperately need. I say, work with this beautiful planet of ours; take the autumn's changes as a sign to work on your hopes and dreams—a sentimental journey of sort. Remember your past, look to the future, and preserve the feelings of renewal that come when you connect to your inner being.

The Season of Beauty

Anticipation has always been one of my favorite emotions…if it's looking forward to something happy and fulfilling that is. Autumn is like that hope for something better, something fresh and life-changing - a death of the old and unneeded. Can you see the correlation? Gardening (when I find the time) is fulfilling to me in the sense that it creates that sense of anticipation. When you drop that bulb into theground, you know you have to wait all winter before you get to enjoy the flower's beauty and fragrance. It's nature's way of saying "be patient; everything has a season of beauty." We need to own that promise for ourselves as well. Find the time this fall to take a journey to a fresh place of self-awareness and hope.

"There is a harmony in autumn, and a luster in its sky, which through the summer is not heard or seen, as if it could not be, as if it had not been!"
Percy Bysshe Shelley

Kellie R. Stone is a blogger, writer, and experienced mom of six who offers wisdom and encouragement in the areas of health/wellness and beauty to readers of her life-changing blog, Women's Life Link, and various other online publications.