Autumn Equinox Reflection In Poetry

(Photographed by Dreaming Ace)

We have officially made it to autumn/fall. I took the above picture at a fall art festival this weekend. I can't really believe I actually caught a butterfly stopping to smell the flowers. But that is a good image for this season, where we slow down, take stock, and think about how we want this year to end.

Fall Poem 1

By Dreaming Ace

Autumn is brought on the wings of the fall equinox

A time of harvesting, a season of slowing down too

Summer is go go go, is nonstop nonstop nonstop

Winter is pausing, is being cozy, warm, and bright

Fall is in between, creating new patterns, routines

Ending one year well, so we can soon start anew

Letting go, simplifying, recentering, looking forward

Personally, my summer was overfilled and ended up overstimulating and overwhelming. As I move into the autumn season, I am trying to create new patterns and routines that will help me move from surviving (which can still be a major accomplishment) to actually finding ways to thrive.

Fall Poem 2

By Dreaming Ace

Autumn is a season of being rooted

Of extending our roots deep into the soil

So no matter when the cold shall come

We still can get the nourishment we need

To carry on, carry on through the storm

Autumn is a season of being rooted

Of extending our roots deep into the soil

The autumn is a season of nourishment. That nourishment might take the form of apples, pumpkins, and warm beverages. That nourishment might also look like self-reflection and knowing that we are connected to so many other people who want the best for us.

Fall Poem 3

By Dreaming Ace

What do I need to let go of?

What do you need to let go of?

What do we need to let go of?

What physical items take up space?

What emotional items bring heaviness?

What digital items bring overwhelm?

What do I need to let go of?

What do you need to let go of?

What do we need to let go of?

Personally I find the fall is a great time to let go. Sometimes that looks like posting items on my local buy nothing group. Sometimes that looks like finding places to donate items. Sometimes that looks like using items up to create space in my life. Sometimes that looks like letting go of self-imposed expectations that were simply causing stress. No matter what form it takes, letting go of what no longer serves feels like a release.

Fall Poem 4

By Dreaming Ace

I tend to push myself too hard

Creating mountains of self imposed

Goals, projects, activities, busyness

I am being intentional this season

To slow down, to be “gentle, gentle”*

*A quote Wentworth Miller once shared on social media

Fall Poem 5

By Dreaming Ace

Enough

I am enough

You are enough

We are enough

Enough

Enough

I have enough*

You have enough*

We have enough*

Enough

Enough

I do enough

You do enough

We do enough

Enough

Enough

I have enough*

You have enough*

We have enough*

Enough

Enough

I am enough

You are enough

We are enough

Enough

*Assuming your basic needs are met, including but not limited to food, shelter, seasonal clothing, love, community, etc. These lines are about having enough as an emotion/feeling versus saying that everyone currently has their basic needs met or that there is no systemic injustice in the world.

Personally letting go and knowing I have enough go hand in hand. The more that I internalize that I have enough, that I do enough, and that I am enough, the easier it is to let go of things (whether physical, emotional, mental, etc.).

 

Fall Poem 6

By Dreaming Ace

My intention for this fall, for the autumn

To help me end 2026 well, start 2027 better

Continuing my 2026 resolution “gentle, gentle”(1)

Moving into my 2027 resolution “wear fine things well”? (2)

Using the lotion, burning the candle, wearing color

I deserve to learn to thrive not simply survive

As I navigate this thing called life, living

Everyone deserves the same things

As we are Dancing Thru The Dark (3)

(1) Wentworth Miller Post on Social Media

(2) Our Flag Means Death

(3) Con O'Neill singing Dancin' Thru The Dark (2020)

The Autumn Equinox is about finding balance and creating new patterns and routines that work for our lives in our current seasons. It is also a time for letting go of what no longer serves us so we can make room for what does. While everyone's autumns are going to look different—some busy, some calm, some active, some restful, some stressful, and some peaceful in the end we all can use this season for "gentle, gentle" unhurried self-reflection about how we want to end the year and what we want to set up for ourselves for the new year.

(Photographed by Dreaming Ace)